1/23Alejandro Cartagena: Ground Rules A comprehensive survey of a prolific photographer who fearlessly charts the dreams and dystopias of Mexico today. Ground Rules is the first comprehensive, fully bilingual survey charting the career of the prolific photographer Alejandro Cartagena. Celebrated for his photobooks Carpoolers (2014) and A Small Guide to Homeownership (2020), Cartagena is known for his formally engaging and socially incisive images that span the politics of the US-Mexico border, suburban sprawl, and the increasing wealth disparities in North America. Ground Rules deploys a diverse array of photographic formats, from documentary and collage to the appropriation of vernacular photographs and AI-generated imagery, all unified by Cartagena’s commitment to addressing Mexico’s most pressing social and environmental issues with humor and pathos. Published to coincide with a mid-career solo exhibition at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, on view from November 2025 through May 2026. Publication date 2025 17.1 X 24 cm Hardcover, 284 pages
1/7Carpoolers #4 3rd edition By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2026 21.5 X 33.5 cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Brad Feuerhelm Editorial Design by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Istanbul by Mas Matbaa Published by Los Sumergidos and Alejandro Cartagena
1/11Special edition Carpoolers #4 3rd edition Special Edition By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2026 21.5 X 33.5 cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Signed and numbered Edition of 100 with one 8 x 12 inch C-print Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Brad Feuerhelm Editorial Design by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Istanbul by Mas Matbaa Published by Los Sumergidos and Alejandro Cartagena
1/12Special edition Carpoolers #4 2nd edition Special Edition By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2024 21.5 X 33.5 cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Signed and numbered Edition of 100 with one 8 x 12 inch C-print Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Brad Feuerhelm Editorial Design by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Istanbul by Mas Matbaa Published by Los Sumergidos and Alejandro Cartagena
1/9Carpoolers #4 2nd edition By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2024 21.5 X 33.5 cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Brad Feuerhelm Editorial Design by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Istanbul by Mas Matbaa Published by Los Sumergidos and Alejandro Cartagena
1/8We Love Our Employees 2nd Edition by Alejandro Cartagena published by Gato Negro Everything was wonderful. In these photographs, you’ll notice a palpable beauty, healthy bodies, nice clothes, exquisite hairstyles, you might smell a well-matched perfume. The context is one of economic bonanza. Healthy, erect; these workers model the best employees: tense, but obedient; frightened, but with their lives resolved — what André Gorz sums up in his sentence: “To lose one’s life to gain a living.” Ximena Peredo text for We Love Our Employees 112 pages / 17 X 23 cm,Soft cover / Risograph,Limited Edition of 2502022 All new photographsBook concept by Alejandro CartagenaEditing by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaText by Ximena PeredoDesign by Gato Negro and Alejandro CartagenaPublished by Gato NegroMexico City
1/9During a period of six years Alejandro Morales collected more than 500 photographs depicting bodies published his local newspaper P.M. in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. The time of extreme violence made Ciudad Juárez among the most violent cities in the world, marked by the large number of intentional homicides committed in its streets. The limits of what the press could publish were blurred as it was so common to find oneself in the middle of a shootout or come across an abandoned corpse. Morales removed all the corpses that he found in the photographs in the P.M. Newspaper by manually erasing them with a gum eraser. 112 pages / 74 works / 17 x 22,7 cm,Swiss bound softcover, Offset printingLenticular photographs mounted on coversISBN 978-91-987606-5-1,First Edition of 600TVC085 Co-published by Kult Books and Los SumergidosDesigned by Fernando GallegosMay 2023 Shortlisted for the 2022 LUMA RENCONTRES DUMMY BOOK AWARD
1/10Julia Gaisbacher focuses on the Austrian architect Eilfried Huth and one of the first, publicly funded participatory social housing projects in Austria from the 1970s. About 50 years later, she started an artistic research project, asking residents how they had experienced the participatory planning process and its impacts on the long-term living quality in these built environments and combined them with archive material, documenting the unique facades of the houses each representing the owners. 160 pages / 21,5 x 28 cm,Hardcover, Japanese Binding,ISBN 978-1-908889-85-0,Limited Edition of 500TVC085 Shortlisted for the PHotoESPAÑA Best Photobook of the Year Shortlisted for the ARLES Author Book Award 2023
1/12“Some of the most vivid and exciting memories from my childhood happened along the Acapulco-Zihuatanejo National Highway. This is a book about the people I saw and eventually met on those journeys” Melba Arellano Melba ArellanoSoftcover18 X 27.5 cm96 pages Signed and numbered Edition of 100 with two 8.5 X 6 inch C-print2021 Published by Los Sumergidos**Only ships from Mexico Shortlisted for the Aperture Paris Photo First Book Award
1/14“Some of the most vivid and exciting memories from my childhood happened along the Acapulco-Zihuatanejo National Highway. This is a book about the peopleI saw and eventually met on those journeys” Melba Arellano Melba ArellanoSoftcover18 X 27.5 cm96 pages2021 Published by Los Sumergidos Shortlisted for the Aperture Paris Photo First Book Award
1/14Carpoolers #4 By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2021 21.5 X 33.5 cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Brad Feuerhelm Editorial Design by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Istanbul by Mas Matbaa Published by Los Sumergidos and Alejandro Cartagena
1/10Special edition Carpoolers #4 Special Edition By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2021 21.5 X 33.5 cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Signed and numbered Edition of 100 with one 8 x 12 inch C-print Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Brad Feuerhelm Editorial Design by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Istanbul by Mas Matbaa Published by Los Sumergidos and Alejandro Cartagena
1/9“The precarious situation of public transportation, and of mobility in general, remains ultra-underrepresented in public debate, as a matter condemned to languish on many public ‘to do’ lists. This means that the work of Alejandro Cartagena takes on specific political importance in making visible the costs of this inaction on the quality of life of people living in the Metropolitan Area of Monterrey.” –– Ximena Peredo 352 pages / 16,1 x 24 cm,Full Colour, Softcover,ISBN 978-1-908889-84-3,Limited Edition of 500Includes PosterTVC084
1/15First edition published by Studio CartagenaBook concept by Alejandro Cartagena The looting, the destruction, the deadly violence. President Donald Trump was right: Insurrection IS upon us… Design by Alessandra Baragiotta and Alejandro CartagenaCover design Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Alessandra Baragiotta and Alejandro Cartagena30 pages1440 color imagesPrinted and stapled in MexicoHand Made, Edition of 200Published January 19th 2021
1/15First edition published by Skinnerboox of 750 publishedBook concept by Alejandro Cartagena “Alejandro’s pictures in this project, since the beginning, have channeled that fear of fire, the engulfing heat, the insatiable flames, devouring everyone and everything, leaving charred scars behind…So what now? If Alejandro can see the future? How is this book, the last in the trilogy, different and new? Well, it’s confident in its bleak outlook.” From the introduction for the book by Jonathan Blaustein Design by Milo Montelli and Alejandro CartagenaCover design and lettering by Valentina CasaliEdited by Cristina Kennington, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaIntroduction by Jonathan Blaustein © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Jonathan Blaustein for the introduction© Authors for archive images© Skinnerboox for this edition 2020
1/16PRE-ORDERFirst edition published by Skinnerboox 50 Special editions with 2 signed and numbered C-printsBook concept by Alejandro Cartagena “Alejandro’s pictures in this project, since the beginning, have channeled that fear of fire, the engulfing heat, the insatiable flames, devouring everyone and everything, leaving charred scars behind…So what now? If Alejandro can see the future? How is this book, the last in the trilogy, different and new? Well, it’s confident in its bleak outlook.” From the introduction for the book by Jonathan Blaustein Design by Milo Montelli and Alejandro CartagenaCover design and lettering by Valentina CasaliEdited by Cristina Kennington, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaIntroduction by Jonathan Blaustein © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Jonathan Blaustein for the introduction© Authors for archive images© Skinnerboox for this edition 2020
1/16Introducing TVC América Latina: a joint publishing project between The Velvet Cell and Alejandro Cartagena. TVC:AL is a platform for Latinx artists and projects that explore Latin American cities and culture through photography and text. On the 19.9.17, an earthquake measuring 7.1 occurred near Mexico City. A number of buildings in the capital were destroyed and at least 200 fatalities have been reported to date. Remarkably, the event happened exactly on the 32nd anniversary of the devastating magnitude 8.1 Mexico City earthquake of 1985. Journalist’s investigations into the disaster revealed that many of the buildings affected had been built to improper standards. The corruption between the state and the property companies was found to have caused multiple unnecessary deaths. As a photographer and architect Onnis Luque wanted to address these events in his work. Having lived through both earthquakes inspired him to create a visual metaphor on the uncertainty that these tragedies produce. “Many people died that day. I wanted to say something about it, but it was emotionally overwhelming. Then I realised that I could use the buildings covered in black as involuntary signs of mourning. Many of them had been damaged by the earthquake, while others were new buildings being developed through shady agreements. With Undercover I seek to cast light on this issue of systemic corruption in Mexico City” – Onnis Luque
1/21A Small Guide to Homeownership by Alejandro Cartagena This book is an amalgamation of 13 years of work, starting with Fragmented Cities series made between 2005 and 2009 in which I documented the suburbanization of the Monterrey metro area in northern Mexico. This project began an exploration that led me to document the changes that this development brought to the city; from transportation, urban planning, infrastructure development, private and public bureaucracy, the challenges in people’s daily life to the ecological consequences of this unplanned growth. “The narrative progressively offers us all the elements to suggest what it will mean to own an American house in Mexico. It’s a timely work started before the biggest property crisis of all time. It’s a smart way to show what’s going on starting from facts. The causes and effects of a certain approach to capitalism, and its consequences on people and the environment. A behind the scenes look at the American Dream served with Tacos’ sauce that leaves us with a bittersweet question: does all of this make sense?” Giuseppe Oliverio “It is difficult to pinpoint A Small Guide to Homeownership’s modus operandi. The work is in the form of a journey, but one that is more of a nebula than a linear progression. As a result, we are given no answers to questions that might be raised, nor are we shown a specific way of seeing, only a topic and its many tentacles. Numerous questions circulate and compete: Are we chasing the wrong dream? Have the suburbs failed in Mexico? Are we building a ‘new’ Mexico? Not all treaties, which begin with ponderings, must end with answers. Through an information overload, Cartagena makes visible a modern crisis, and the constant anxiety that exists as its background noise. Like a conductor, he uses his images as the highs and lows, a way to both soothe and extend the perplexing feeling of a heart beating too fast, of a room made small with clutter.” Kyler Zeleny for Photo Eye Book concept by Alejandro CartagenaDesign by Ricardo Nunes, Éanna de Fréine, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaTexts by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaPrepress by The Velvet CellPrinted in EuropePublished by The Velvet Cell360 pp / 152 x 228 mmSoftcover, Perfect BoundFour Colour Offset © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos for the texts© Authors for archive images© The Velvet Cell for this edition 2020
1/13El Casting by Studio Cartagena Unique Box with 30 analog transparencies, 1 poster and booklet Description: “Because the female nude is classically considered a pillar in refined culture, particularly when portrayed in oil paintings, producers such as Guillermo Calderón came to the conclusion that “high art” simulacrum was the ideal cliché to rely on in order to boost ticket sales without losing mainstream consumers. As seen from a western standpoint, art history dictates that a woman’s body is not to be represented as naked or active in sexual pleasure if it is to hang from respectable walls. The same rule applied to cinema at the time, explaining why a variety of fictional male painters and their attractive models were eagerly written into corny scripts.” Ana Cadena Payton Casting by: Alessandra Baragiotta, Cristina Kennington Texts by: Ana Cadena Payton, Victoria Fava Boxes by: Omar L. Mendoza Printed by: Alejandro Cartagena Staff: Fernando Gallegos, Iván García Scripts, songs and posters from the movies: Diana La Cazadora, El Seductor, Esposas Infieles, La Ilegítima, La virtud Desnuda,La Fuerza del Deseo © Images and texts of the Authors Published 2020 Printed in Monterrey, Mexico
1/11We Love Our Employees by Alejandro Cartagenapublished by Gato Negro Description: Everything was wonderful. In these photographs, you’ll notice a palpable beauty, healthy bodies, nice clothes, exquisitehairstyles, you might smell a well-matched perfume. The context is one of economic bonanza. Healthy, erect; these workers modelthe best employees: tense, but obedient; frightened, but with their lives resolved — what André Gorz sums up in his sentence: “To loseone’s life to gain a living.” Ximena Peredo text for We Love Our Employees Soft cover 2019 Book concept by Alejandro Cartagena Editing by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro Cartagena Text by Ximena Peredo Design by Gato Negro and Alejandro Cartagena Published by Gato Negro Mexico City Risograph 112 pages
1/15Special edition Carpoolers 3rd Edition By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2019 19 X 30cm Softcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edition of 490 Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica McDonald Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed in Madrid by Brizzolis Prepress La Troupe Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/12Los Sumergidos, Self published by Carlos Loret de Mola, Alejandro Cartagena, Juan Madrid, Freddy Martinez, Fernando Gallegos “The smart thing about Los Sumergidos is the way these images of nights, roads, red lights, and tired faces link to the images we already have in our heads. And then we project characters (Teresa, her mother Luisa, her absent father) and narratives onto the people we see and the story takes shape. The introductory text helps with this (the journal text less so) as do the multiple narrative strands. All things are possible in Los Sumergidos for Teresa, it’s just that some things are more possible than others. And that’s what the pictures tell us.” Colin Pantall for the Photogorphic Museum of Humanity Authors: Carlos Loret de Mola, Alejandro Cartagena, Juan Madrid, Freddy Martinez, Fernando GallegosDesign: Roberto SalazarPrepress: La TroupePrinted in Brizzolis SpainOffset print, Pages: 112Size: 7 3/4 x 10 1/2 inchesSoft Cover
1/14A guide to Infrastructure and Corruption by Alejandro Cartagena “In A Guide to Infrastructure and Corruption, urban infrastructure is a gear of political power. Its aim is to conquer the territory of the city and hold dominion over certain city relationships.Public space is more than just a polygon delineated by coordinates, it is a factory of social realities. There would be nothing problematic aboutthis power if it weren’t exclusive. Those who build the city exercise a regulatory power over our mindset and our everyday experience. Therhythms that regulate our hours, “our place” in society and the type of roads we take on our daily commute are manifestations of this control.” Ximena Peredo Limited Edition Hardcover of 450 CopiesSpecial Slipcase Edition (w/ 2 Prints) of 50 CopiesBook concept by Alejandro CartagenaDesign by Éanna de Fréine, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaTexts by Ximena PeredoPrepress by La TroupePrinted in TaiwanPublished by The Velvet Cell192 pp / 140 x 210 mmHardcover, Tape-BoundFour Colour Offset © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Ximena Peredo for the texts© Authors for archive images© The Velvet Cell for this edition 2017
1/20A Guide to Infrastructure and Corruption Limited Edition Hardcover by Alejandro CartagenaSpecial Slipcase Edition (w/ 2 Prints) of 50 Copies “In A Guide to Infrastructure and Corruption, urban infrastructure is a gear of political power. Its aim is to conquer the territory of the city and hold dominion over certain city relationships.Public space is more than just a polygon delineated by coordinates, it is a factory of social realities. There would be nothing problematic aboutthis power if it weren’t exclusive. Those who build the city exercise a regulatory power over our mindset and our everyday experience. Therhythms that regulate our hours, “our place” in society and the type of roads we take on our daily commute are manifestations of this control.” Ximena Peredo Book concept by Alejandro CartagenaDesign by Éanna de Fréine, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaTexts by Ximena PeredoPrepress by La TroupePrinted in TaiwanPublished by The Velvet Cell192 pp / 140 x 210 mmHardcover, Tape-BoundFour Colour Offset © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Ximena Peredo for the texts© Authors for archive images© The Velvet Cell for this edition 2017
1/13Carpoolers Discarded-Collages. Unique work, signed by Alejandro Cartagena. Self Published 2014, Edition of 5 These 5 books are the remnants of the printing process of the first edition of the Carpoolers book. I have saved them and offer them now as 5 unique works. They offer a link to the 3 editions of the Carpoolers and a visual decomposition of one of my favorite projects. Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica S McDonald 22 X 33.5cm Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Editorial Design by Savvy Printed in Mexico at Offset Santiago Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/15Enrique 2012-2018. A Presidential Guide to Selfies. Book concept by Alejandro Cartagena The deliberate use of merchandising strategies in presidential campaigns and governmental communications have in the past decade sought out ways to close the gap between the people and their candidates or government officials. The epitome of such strategies can be found in one section of the official web site of the Mexican presidency entitled “My picture with the President”. Now six years into his devastating presidency, it seems clear that the only thing president Enrique Peña Nieto has been interested in all along was looking his best with his fans. Design by Gato Negro and Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Alejandro CartagenaPrinted in the MexicoRisograph PrintPublished by Chaco and Gato Negro60 pages 16.5 cm x 11.5 cmSoft cover, hot melt© Alejandro Cartagena, Gato Negro, Chaco
1/11Book concept by Alejandro Cartagena and VSWDesign by Alejandro Cartagena and Dan VarenkaEdited by Alejandro CartagenaPrinted in the USAPublished by Visual Studies Press44 pp / 10.25 x 6.5 inchesSoft cover, Saddle-stiched© Alejandro Cartagena and VSW
1/1650 Special editions. Includes 2 signed and numbered C-prints Book concept by Alejandro Cartagena Description: "Alejandro’s second volume, Santa Barbara Shame on US of the Santa Barbara series is a continuation, not a re-mix of the first edition published last year. It is solid. It implies horror and the crumbling cake of Americana..."Brad Feuerhelm for Photobookstore books of 2017 Design by Milo Montelli and Alejandro CartagenaCover design and lettering by Valentina CasaliEdited by Cristina Kennington, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaIntroduction by Jonathan BlausteinPrepress by Salvatore SantoroPrinted in ItalyISBN 978-88-94895-05-6 © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Jonathan Blaustein for the introduction© Authors for archive images© Skinnerboox for this edition 2017
1/16Rivers of Power By Alejandro Cartagena Description:”It’s a great book in which you’re immersed in a full range of different images from different sources. There’s also the sense that the books Cartagena makes, as well as being works in themselves, are also punctuation marks in a larger body of work that he’s already semi-visualising in his photobooks, that the books, though great, are just a stepping stone to some huge installation that will one day take up a couple of floors of one of the world’s major museums. There’s a feeling that the book isn’t everything, that the book is just the beginning”. Colin Pantall Designed and edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Introduction by Ximena Peredo Essay by Gonzalo Ortega Editorial design by Communal Co Published by NEWWER and Alejandro Cartagena Softcover in Box 490 Trade copies 144 pages, 23x30cm Printed in Spain at Palermo Prepress by La Troupe ISBN 978-0-9966697-1-9
1/19Rivers of Power Special Edition Clamshell box with 2 prints By Alejandro Cartagena Description:”Rivers of Power and its mix of archive images, blurred film/tv news stills and outstanding photography is beautiful to look at even though the subject matter is – as always in Alejandro’s work – quite disturbing”. Elsewhere A journal of Place Designed and edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Introduction by Ximena Peredo Essay by Gonzalo Ortega Editorial design by Communal Co Published by NEWWER and Alejandro Cartagena Softcover in Box In a Case with signed print 144 pages, 23x30cm Printed in Spain at Palermo Prepress by La Troupe ISBN 978-0-9966697-1-9
1/12First edition published by Skinnerboox of 50 published + 50 Special editions with 2 signed and numbered C-printsBook concept by Alejandro Cartagena Description: “…Through this narrative Cartagena conjures the sense of a place, which has the air of an ambiguous borderland, a porous place where culture and people flow. Whether it is between north or south, or past and present, is difficult to say. It is a place where the idea of concrete identities, nationalities and strictly delineated borders seem like a nostalgic dream or a relicfrom the past superseded by a new and very different reality – a place where the topography is treacherous, the present uncertain, and the future, even more so”. LEWIS BUSH for 1000 Words Design by Milo Montelli and Alejandro CartagenaCover design and lettering by Valentina CasaliEdited by Cristina Kennington, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaIntroduction by Jonathan BlausteinPrepress by Salvatore SantoroPrinted in ItalyISBN 978-88-941341-2-4 © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Jonathan Blaustein for the introduction© Authors for archive images© Skinnerboox for this edition 2016
1/7Headshots of the President By Alejandro Cartagena Description: In Headshots, Alejandro Cartagena mimics the idea of Hollywood actors trying to secure a casting through their set of headshots. Here, the then President of Mexico Enrique Peña Nieto, is presenting himself for the first time as the official candidate for the PRI party at the International Book Fair of Guadalajara. To say the least, his “performance” was a poor one. He tries to win over the crowd with his looks and best posses but his lack of knowledge of his favorite books surpassed any gain his acting could give. In the back of the 28 prints you can find some of Peña Nieto´s promises of how he was going to change Mexico. The poster child for the new PRI, ended up leading the country into more chaos and social unrest. Design concept by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Published 2015 29 loose pages in box 5 x 6in 200gm Offset printing Edition of 200 ISBN: 978-0-9966697-0-2 Published by Studio Cartagena
1/7Headshots of the President Special Edition By Alejandro Cartagena In Headshots, Alejandro Cartagena mimics the idea of Hollywood actors trying to secure a casting through their set of headshots. Here, the then President of Mexico Enrique Peña Nieto, is presenting himself for the first time as the official candidate for the PRI party at the International Book Fair of Guadalajara. To say the least, his “performance” was a poor one. He tries to win over the crowd with his looks and best posses but his lack of knowledge of his favorite books surpassed any gain his acting could give. In the back of the 28 prints you can find some of Peña Nieto´s promises of how he was going to change Mexico. The poster child for the new PRI, ended up leading the country into more chaos and social unrest. Design concept by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Published 2015 29 loose prints in Clamshell Box 5 x 6in 400gm Offset printing Edition of 10 ISBN: 978-0-9966697-0-2 Published by Studio Cartagena
1/9Suburbia Mexicana By Alejandro Cartagena Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Daylight Introduction by Karen Irvine Essay by Gerardo Montiel Klint Interview by Lisa Uddin Editorial Design by Ursula Damm Co-Published by Daylight and Photolucida Winner of the Photolucida Critical Mass Book Award Publication date, 2011 / 23.5 x 29cm / 800g Hardcover, 108 pages, Offset printing Edition of 2000, ISBN 9780983231608$60 + $20 Donkey Shipping (Mexico to USA to Rest of the World)
1/8Suburbia Mexicana Special Edition with Print By Alejandro Cartagena Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Daylight Introduction by Karen Irvine Essay by Gerardo Montiel Klint Interview by Lisa Uddin Editorial Design by Ursula Damm Co-Published by Daylight and Photolucida Winner of the Photolucida Critical Mass Book Award Publication date, 2011 / 23.5 x 29cm / 800g Hardcover, 108 pages, Offset printing Edition of 2000, ISBN 9780983231608
1/8An archive project about the politics of a political archive. There are 6 volumes included in Love and Politics:Book I. Our guideBook II. The InaugurationBook III. Music for the MasesBook IV. The SupervisorsBook V. Rituals of LoveBook VI. For Our Children Book concept by Alejandro CartagenaRisograph print / 17 x 23 cm,Printing 2020,Limited edition of 100
1/14Carpoolers #3 By Alejandro Cartagena “Carpoolers is a deceptively powerful photobook, so well constructed that we’re suddenly eager to see more of something we had previously ignored”. — Loring Knoblauch for Collector Daily Publication date 2019 19 X 30cm Softcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edition of 490 Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica McDonald Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed in Madrid by Brizzolis Prepress La Troupe Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/38A Small Guide to Homeownership by Alejandro Cartagena This book is an amalgamation of 13 years of work, starting with Fragmented Cities series made between 2005 and 2009 in which I documented the suburbanization of the Monterrey metro area in northern Mexico. This project began an exploration that led me to document the changes that this development brought to the city; from transportation, urban planning, infrastructure development, private and public bureaucracy, the challenges in people’s daily life to the ecological consequences of this unplanned growth. Book concept by Alejandro CartagenaDesign by Ricardo Nunes, Éanna de Fréine, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaTexts by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaPrepress by The Velvet CellPrinted in EuropePublished by The Velvet Cell360 pp / 152 x 228 mmSoftcover, Perfect BoundFour Colour Offset © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos for the texts© Authors for archive images© The Velvet Cell for this edition 2020
1/14First edition published by Skinnerboox of 450 published + 50 Special editions with 2 signed and numbered C-printsBook concept by Alejandro Cartagena “Alejandro’s second volume, Santa Barbara Shame on US of the Santa Barbara series is a continuation, not a re-mix of the first edition published last year. It is solid. It implies horror and the crumbling cake of Americana…”Brad Feuerhelm for Photobookstore books of 2017 Design by Milo Montelli and Alejandro CartagenaCover design and lettering by Valentina CasaliEdited by Cristina Kennington, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaIntroduction by Jonathan BlausteinPrepress by Salvatore SantoroPrinted in ItalyISBN 978-88-94895-05-6 © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Jonathan Blaustein for the introduction© Authors for archive images© Skinnerboox for this edition 2017
1/11First edition published by Skinnerboox of 450 published + 50 Special editions with 2 signed and numbered C-printsBook concept by Alejandro Cartagena “A fitting book for our current US political climate”. Jeffrey Ladd for the Photobookstore Design by Milo Montelli and Alejandro CartagenaCover design and lettering by Valentina CasaliEdited by Cristina Kennington, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaIntroduction by Jonathan BlausteinPrepress by Salvatore SantoroPrinted in ItalyISBN 978-88-941341-2-4 © Alejandro Cartagena for the images© Jonathan Blaustein for the introduction© Authors for archive images© Skinnerboox for this edition 2016
1/16Obras by Alejandro Cartagena Obras is an archive project zine published for the XII FEMSA Bienal. Obras explores the need politicians have to document their use of public resources in infrastructure. Zine concept by Alejandro CartagenaDesign by Nicolás Pradilla, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaEdited by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro CartagenaPrinted in Mexico at Lugar Común for the XII FEMSA BienalDistribution Lugar Común for the XII FEMSA Bienal© Authors for archive images© Alejandro Cartagena for this edition 2016
1/8Por lo Que Peleamos by Alejandro Cartagena “Space is the new arena for political debate. Within space, disagreement takes shape and ideologies, authoritarianism and democracy come to life. Its importance does not lie on a post-colonial kind of control over land, but on the fact that it creates, or rather recreates, certain links. As a result, rather than referring to a location that we can pinpoint with coordinates or to the concept of location, space, as Henri Lefebvre puts it, is a three-dimensional entity, it is concrete matter –here- and it is an idea – what here means-, but, above all, it is a social practice – what I do here. Thus, when talking about conflicts over a certain space there is much more than a mere fight over a piece of land. Deep down, disagreements are based on the type of link that we want to create with a certain place. In that sense, by defending a certain space we are exercising our right to create realities.” Ximena Peredo Newspaper concept by Alejandro Cartagena 3000 copies given away during the FEMSA Bienal 2016 as part of the exhibition “Poéticas del decrecimiento. ¿Cómo vivir mejor con menos?”. Curated by Willy Kautz and Leo Marz Design by Ana Briseño, Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro Cartagena Edited by Fernando Gallegos and Alejandro Cartagena Printed in Mexico at Milenio Newspaper printing press © Alejandro Cartagena for the images © Alejandro Cartagena for this edition 2016 © Ximena Peredo for the Text
1/19Piedra-Padre Universo by Clara de Tezanos/ Edited by Alejandro Cartagena. Edition of 200. Published by Clara de Tezanos "A collaboration with Clara de Tezanos. The first book I took a role as editor/sequencer. The result is a cacophony of images that mimic the experience of being a daughter and the impossibility of detaching ourselves from our personal histories. “It´s something that you can really turn yourself over to the visual experience of, which is pretty engrossing, and feels fresh and distinctive, and like something I hadn´t seen before.” -Kristen Lubben Executive Director of Magnum Foundation Design by David Bozareyes, Rodrigo Morales, Clara de Tezanos and Alejandro Cartagena Edited by Alejandro Cartagena Printed in the Guatemala Published by Clara de Tezanos 130 pages 22 x 15.5 cm Hard Cover Order HERE Edition of 200 © Clara de Tezanos
1/5Carpoolers Special edition By Alejandro Cartagena, w/ (8×10 inches) inkjet print in box Description:”Inside Cartagena’s tightly framed photographs, only thin clouds, visible as reflections, hint at the complex environment in which this scenario plays out day after day for the carpoolers. To get a sense of their perspective as this project neared completion, Cartagena climbed into the bed of a pickup truck with his camera one Sunday morning. With their disorienting, diagonal lines and indistinct, partial glimpses, the images he made contrast starkly with the controlled uniformity characteristic of the principal series”.—Claudi Carreras Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica S McDonald Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Editorial Design by Savvy Printed in Mexico at Offset Santiago Published by Alejandro Cartagena Publication date, 2014 / 22 X 33.5cm / 1Kg Hardcover with cut out, 112 pages, Offset printing Edition of 40, ISBN 9780692226605
1/10Carpoolers #1 by Alejandro Cartagena Description:”It’s useless to comment now on the impact that this series by Alejandro had last year and how effective his neutral approach to the subject was. In the book (brilliantly designed by him, by the way) he leaves some room to certain aspects that might have gotten lost in the transition from the camera to the wall, and that is why this book is great! The hypnotic repetitive beginning, respectful to the series as we’ve known it so far, slowly gets more and more interrupted by frames and pieces of frames that drive you into a new kind of hypnotic state but this time almost as if you were inside the car yourself looking at and experiencing the road not from above anymore”. —Cristina de Middel for Best Books of 2014 Photoeye Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica S McDonald Hardcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Editorial Design by Savvy Printed in Mexico at Offset Santiago Published by Alejandro Cartagena Publication date, 2014 / 22 X 33.5cm / 1Kg Hardcover with cut out,112 pages, Offset printing Edition of 40, ISBN 9780692226605
1/14Special Edition Carpoolers 2nd Edition By Alejandro Cartagena Publication date April 2016 / 19 X 30cm Softcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edition of 470 Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica McDonald Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed in Taiwan Print supervision and production by Eanna de Freine Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/13Carpoolers 2nd Edition By Alejandro Cartagena Publication date April 2016 / 19 X 30cm Softcover, 112 pages, Offset printing Edition of 470 Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Text by Jessica McDonald Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed in Taiwan Print supervision and production by Eanna de Freine Published by Alejandro Cartagena Description
1/18Before the War by Alejandro Cartagena “Ultimately, Before the War visualizes the confusion and the sense of defenselessness that was spread throughout the country during the war in a very powerful way. Without showing us the actual atrocities that have happened in the country, Cartagena describes these feelings and actions without excess – and the reader is required to be involved beyond simply turning pages of a book” .—Rachel Morón for GUP Magazine Publication date, 2015 / 30 x 23.5cm / 200g 1 booklet, 102 pages, 1 poster, 1 foldout Risograph, Offset printing Edition of 250, no ISBN Edited by Fernando Gallegos Design concept by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed by Crater Invertido and Oscar Carnevali Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/5Before the War Special Edition by Alejandro Cartagena “The images are full-bled in a series of small signature booklets, comprised like nesting dolls to make up the larger whole. Intentionally loose in formality, the publication inspires the viewer to function as an investigator. With my second peering, I found better pleasure engaging with the photos stream-of-consciously, ingesting the the images cinematically, excited in leaving the overarching story of the Mexican drug cartel wars behind and belied. This is photography and editing working its great tangle of nonfictitious and fictional ways. One of the few examples where elaborate and novel design doesn’t deter my excitement to flip and flounder”. Michael Ast for PhotoBook Melbourne Publication date 2015 / 30 x 23.5cm / 600g 5 booklets, 102 pages, 1 poster, 1 postcard 5 (8×10) inkjet prints in box Texts by César Valdez Risograph, Offset printing Edition of 11, no ISBN Edited by Fernando Gallegos Design concept by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed by Crater Invertido and Oscar Carnevali Box design by Teresa Rodriguez Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/18Before the War 1st Edition by Alejandro Cartagena “In terms of book form, “Before the War” is not one cohesive “book” but rather a splintering of signatures, a splintering of narrative; a book broken up into pieces with an equally disjointed story. The photographs within are suggestive of the people and places affected by the drug war in Mexico. Yet the more information we are presented with, the less we seem to understand. This experience parallels the confusion of citizens living amongst it. Cartagena adds his perspective and leaves us questioning; What do we truly know? Who do we believe? What is really going on?” Larissa Leclair for TIME Publication date 2015 / 30 x 23.5cm / 600g 5 booklets, 102 pages, 1 poster, 1 postcard 5 (8×10) inkjet prints in box Texts by César Valdez Risograph, Offset printing Edition of 11, no ISBN Edited by Fernando Gallegos Design concept by Alejandro Cartagena and Fernando Gallegos Editorial Design by Roberto Salazar Printed by Crater Invertido and Oscar Carnevali Published by Alejandro Cartagena
1/5Espacios Habitables by Alejandro Cartagena “…con esta valoración y documentación del espacio doméstico, Cartagena hace sentir como verdadera una vida que a veces pareciera ilusoria. Lanza a los espectadores el cuestionamiento de aspectos universalmente aceptados sobre el núcleo al cual pertenecemos y nuestra también necesidad de recrear una memoria personal y colectiva.” Text by Marcela Torres Published 2005 13 x 16cm / 120g Softcover, 40 pages, Offset printing Edition of 500, No ISBN Edited by Alejandro Cartagena Texts by Marcela Torres Editorial Design by Ana González Co-Published by Alejandro Cartagena and CONARTE
1/8Identidad Nuevo León by Alejandro Cartagena and Rubén Marcos Description: The main value of the images is to reveal how people make efforts to adapt to their environment; even if the physical traits can give a certain number of identifying guidelines, the prevalent aspect in the present volume is the way in which the representations allow to study the manner in which the inhabitants of Nuevo León wander and try to integrate themselves with their surroundings.” Text by José Luis Solís Published 2006 16.5 x 21.5cm / 300g Softcover, 90 pages, Offset printing Edition of 1000, ISBN 970 9715-20-8 Edited by Alejandro Cartagena and Rubén Marcos Texts by José Luis Solis and Carlos Aranda Márquez Editorial Design by Eduardo Leyva Co-Published by Fondo Editorial Nuevo León and UDEM