On May 6, 2007, around 20,000 people posed nude for American artist Spencer Tunick in the Zócalo, the heart of Mexico City.
The artist's request was that the images be made with the first rays of the sun and against all odds, thousands of people came to the call that cold Sunday at 6 in the morning.
The images were recorded in the collective memory of an entire country.
Even 13 years later, Tunick, as they call it, remains for many one of the most memorable days they lived.
In
Verne
we received hundreds of anecdotes from the participants about what they saw and experienced.
The Morton house will auction until December 5 two contemporary photographs of that session valued between 18,000 and 26,000 pesos (from 800 to 1,200 dollars) each.
Bids can be made through their website.
In one of the images, 'Mexico City One. Zócalo 2007', all the participants can be seen standing, looking towards the camera with the National Palace in the background.
In the other, 'Mexico City Five.
Zócalo 2007 ', all of them have their backs and are arm in arm.
Both images measure 8x10 inches.
"It is a monumental artistic piece that took place in a blank space like the Zócalo, which lends itself to the fusion of any subject," says Marcela Mena, photography expert at Morton Subastas.
One of Spencer Tunick's pictures from May 6, 2007. Courtesy of Morton Subastas
Either because the event brought together a large number of curious people, or because many were interested in being part of a living work of art, the streets that surrounded the Zócalo were abuzz that brought together families from all over the country in front of the objective of Your Nick.
“None of us present knew how it was going to be, it was something unprecedented.
At the signal, we all took off our clothes and it was like jumping into a pool.
In two minutes everyone was naked.
For me it was the culmination of the party, ”says Gustavo Ruiz, 38.
He and his group of friends arrived live to pose that day.
“70% of the party we were at went to the Zócalo for Spencer Tunick.
In a society like ours, it was scandalous for someone under the guise of art to put naked people in a public square ”, he adds.
"The sun rose behind the majestic National Palace when the attendees posed as they arrived at the world, in a fetal position," EL PAÍS said.
The society of 2007 was very different from what we know now.
Mexico had just held a tight election that gave the conservative Felipe Calderón the winner, the war against drug trafficking was just beginning, which would leave more than 200,000 dead in the country, abortion had just been legalized in the country's capital and it was still missing for the same-sex couples could marry.
"It was a super liberating moment that I don't know if it would be repeated in Mexico today, given the current conditions," says
Verne
Lulú Barrera, also 38, who came with her cousins and uncles.
“I saw everything full of furs and it was very beautiful;
the skin tones were erased in everyone's nudity and it went into the background, we were all very concentrated so that it was a coordinated mass dance ", he adds,
It is still captivating to see how thousands of people moved before the artist's instructions thanks to a megaphone.
Helped and supported by the Coordination of Culture of the National Autonomous University (UNAM) and the government of the Federal District, the team of 80 volunteers worked two months in advance so that everything was perfect.
First, the participants had to sign a permit that had to be shown at the entrance of the performance.
Afterwards, put the clothes in plastic bags and remember the exact place where they left them.
If you want to know if everyone returned home with clothes, several testimonies that have reached us testify that more than one, in addition to shame, lost his pants in the Zócalo.
“The plate was cleaned with high-pressure water and although there were few means, the result was good.
I was surprised that the age range was very varied: there were young people but also people over 60, homosexual couples, entire families.
I think many did it because of the symbolism of being naked in such an open and representative space, ”says Ari Rodríguez, 37, a volunteer for the organizing committee.
They have also joined the faces party known as was the case of the deceased recently
vedette
Wanda Seux and writer Carlos Monsivais, who wrote an extensive chronicle of those days: "No underwear, tie and socks soul is lost ,
" he said.
Me, An unforgettable experience!
pic.twitter.com/hny2n1tNbj
- Said El Negro (@saidelnegro) November 26, 2020
Despite the fact that most of the memories we have collected are positive, the session was not as pleasant for everyone.
While there were equal conditions regarding nudity, everything seemed harmonious, after several shots of one side, another and crouching, the photographer asked the men to leave to take a picture with only the women.
“The men put on their clothes and watched.
The women were left naked and with the dawn already well advanced.
When we returned for our clothes, the men, many, had ceased to be the accomplices with whom we shared the naked public space.
They went back to being bystanders and harassers and we went back to being women's bodies, ”says Laura Aguirre.
Her testimony is supported by that of other women who had the same experience.
The next morning Spencer Tunick's piece made the front page of all the national newspapers and broke an attendance record, certified by
Guinness
.
The work contributed to the visual investigation of collective nudity and the demystification of modesty in a society as conservative as that of Mexico in 2007. At the end, each participant received a printed copy with the artist's signature on the back.
Many of them keep the framed photo in their house as a memory of that day without clothes when they ran freely through the Zócalo.
"The weight of demography annihilates shame", as Monsiváis would say.
My souvenir photo pic.twitter.com/Emqphdsx7c
- 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗕.
(@_Jud_B) November 25, 2020
Well, it is a sticker, but it is not a seal 👀 pic.twitter.com/rPOm5UxpPZ
- Adrián Olivas (@eladro) November 27, 2020
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