Axel Void is still in Central America where he just wrapped up this piece somewhere in the Hornos neighbourhood, Mexico City.
Hornos (Ovens) is a neighborhood next to where GraffitiWorld has its office. It got its name because there used to be two big brick ovens in this neighborhood. After passing by everyday through the bridge of Alta Tension, and seeing the neighborhood on one side and a very colorful cemetery on the other, I decided to paint the view of the neighborhood from the bridge. I spent a lot of time detailing all of their small streets and roof tops in the painting, yet I felt like a spectator or a tourist, since I was analyzing them from far away but had not actually walked down to see from the inside. So I thought doing a mural there would be a nice idea.
I went down, asked if I could paint, and met a man called “el terrible”, even though he was a sweet old man. He worked in the mines since he was nine years old, where he got is pseudonym. He soon agreed to have me paint his house. I spent the rest of the afternoon with mixed feelings; hanging out with the charming kids from the neighborhood and the very welcoming people of Hornos. We shared food and laughs, but I also noticed that most of the people my age were openly breathing in this drug they call “Activo”, a dissolvent used to unclog the pipes. Even though they live in what people call humble houses, I have to admit that the sense of community and the physical proximity that they share has its good and bad things, but maintains the sense of humanity that for at least one day felt very warm.
Once I was done with the mural they invited me to play soccer in this beautiful five-a-side pitch they had under the bridge. Many of the people from the neighborhood came to watch the game, where both kids and adults had a kick about. After I came back from playing soccer, I was surprised to find that they covered the text on my wall that read “Nadie” (Nobody), but respected the rest of the piece.
I feel the fair title to this piece should be “Alguien”, Somebody. — Axel Void
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