LSYTSDA/ Lo siento, yo tampoco soy de aquí, Spanish (“I’m sorry, I’m not from here either”) is a documentary art project that explores the concept of estrangement. The title, inspired by the Catalan fanzine El Naufraguito, captures that constant, somewhat humorous yet almost apologetic feeling of not being “from here.”
The project aims to collect firsthand accounts from migrants, gradually building a living catalogue of voices and experiences. In this way, it is inherently collective: its meaning and depth emerge from the contributions of others.
The coin , as both metaphor and medium, becomes a particularly eloquent symbol of inequality. It refers to ethnic penalization: the systemic disadvantage that pushes most economic migrants into low-paid, low-prestige jobs with limited opportunities for advancement. It also evokes the emotional toll of migration, described by Joseba Achotegui as Ulysses syndrome: a form of grief caused by displacement, separation, and the loss of language, culture, and homeland. As a visual device, the coin operates on multiple levels. On one hand, the repetition of faces creates a visual landscape in which individuality dissolves into rhythm and pattern. On the other hand, the textual elements embedded in each piece open up further layers of meaning. These include direct quotes from real conversations, bringing socio-economic and psychological realities into focus. The arbitrary monetary values assigned to each coin further highlight the absurd and unequal ways in which human lives are valued based on origin or social status.
Ultimately, these coins are also part of a game, a symbolic economic exchange I offer to the viewer or collector. You may invest in one coin today and, years later, return it to exchange for another available piece. In this way, the work remains open to transformation, connection, and ongoing dialogue.