It is a photograph taken by the ethnographer in El Vado, a neigborhood in Cuenca/Ecuador. It basically draws attention to the cars passing through a bridge, which reflects well the author's presentation of this neighborhood in the caption and within the text. El Vado, one of the main entrances to the city center, faces an intense traffic and is also home to a growing car industry.
This visualization represents El Vado as a historical entrance to the city by inviting us to think about the materiality of "such entering" today. People going to the city center via cars create a "local" pollution problem in a neigborhood by just passing through a place. We, for example, do not see pedestrians or bikes in the photo, but only vehichles work with fossil fuels (if they are not electric cars).
The caption does not directly say anything about toxics but gestures towards it through emphasizing the neighborhood as "entrance." The toxicity problem in this neigborhood is rendered visible through the representation of a car-populated area.
The caption may add another adjective to specify what kind of an entrance it is. It writes "historical entrance", perhaps, a "polluted" or "toxic" entrance"?
The author may want to say more about the other components in the image, such the bridge, stream etc..
At first glance, the image seems commonplace and its subject unclear--actually, my eye was initially drawn not to the line of cars but to the river, thinking that was the site of the toxicity in question. It is an indication, perhaps, of the ubiquity and taken-for-grantedness of the automobile in the modern world that it so often fails to inspire our attention, interest, and concern.
What some might deem as waste, this image centers. It centers foamy water as a site of generational differentiation, engaging ethnographically with the manner in which environmental changes shift peoples' interactions. It represents a sentiment of at once nostalgia, sadness and disgust on the one hand, and edginess, trendiness, and youthfulness on the other. The argument is that toxicity has the potential to shift social dynamics with and within a place.
It would be helpful to learn more about the contextual elements of this place: what are the social dynamics in Bar Elias overall, and how does this influence the dynamics surrounding this river? What kidn of factory is polluting the river? What are the potential connections between this river and the polluter nationally/internationally? How is the split between generations over this river emblematic of overall generational differentiation?
A photo taken by one of the residents of Bar Elias, with the support of the ethnographer (would be interested to know more about this connection to the project listed from 2019). The fact that the photo was taken by a resident is notable because it potentially indicates something that is important to the person who took it. The image is primarily focused on the water itself as opposed to incorporating more of the surrounding area, such as the edge where young people hang out.
I think it might help to see some of the more directly surrounding areas, such as where the young people hang out (the ledge). Just a slight extension might provide some visual context for how to understand the significance of the river. Or perhaps a collage with some accompanying images to get a sense of the place. As of right now, it's a bit difficult to mentally visualize how this river fits physically/geographically within the context of the town. Where is the factory? Where is the town center?
