https://www.robertpluma.com/welcome daily 1.0 2021-05-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1573870789465-FVF7TKVL0CU0D5WUFRV4/Pluma_MigrationReligion_GrantAnnouncement.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1574293306392-T0GHZJXXIVUJ5XKM6ANG/03_HiddenHistories_AugmentedRealityApplication_Mockups.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1574293215308-HGCWL16UA4OERQZW8E1F/01_HiddenHistories_AugmentedRealityApplication_Mockups.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1574293268715-IJDODD46LMLR7BJ8D99G/02_HiddenHistories_AugmentedRealityApplication_Mockups.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1573868244598-OSLMBQG6QR19NJK4BOJY/Pluma_MigrationReligion_GrantAnnouncement.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1573881925458-VFZ84O83R0EMPSV3FO1K/Pluma05.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1574294233429-ERAXZEDIYTAC1VE6X2GX/HiddenHistories_ArchiveNotebook.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d47d412b8ddea29eb012d8/1460472285353-6K0NC7QS6IYOJKR5EX9F/divider_nature.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d47d412b8ddea29eb012d8/1507236635758-T9CW2X737NF0V0I9WDHP/sonora-cactus.jpg Hidden Histories - Robert Pluma https://www.robertpluma.com/about daily 0.75 2021-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1573884378431-63RNQB52H16IM9K3HPEG/13_1460.jpg About https://www.robertpluma.com/archive-projects daily 0.75 2019-11-26 https://www.robertpluma.com/contact daily 0.75 2024-01-22 https://www.robertpluma.com/public-key daily 0.75 2019-11-25 https://www.robertpluma.com/resume daily 0.75 2021-11-16 https://www.robertpluma.com/catchlight-2024/images daily 0.75 2024-01-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214824315-KEF7GNUZ4X6UGCIC9JJJ/Pluma_HH_01.jpg CatchLight My grandfather, Victor Vallejo Guerrero (81 at the time), demonstrating how he would climb to the tops of the walls at Mission San José as a child. He had a sister who died young and was buried along the walls. Many mission descendants are fighting to designate several sites within the missions as cemeteries, and for the right to decide what is done with remains when they are found. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214824138-1IQLITRCD1HDURGGB3SC/Pluma_HH_02.jpg CatchLight Hortencia Hernandez Guerrero (my grandmother) stands near the window of the San Antonio restaurant Schilo's, the only way they would allow her to purchase her food as a child. At the time, there was a sign on the door which read, "NO DOGS, NO MEXICANS, NO BLACKS". A Matriarch in the ancient, eternal sense, Hortencia lived for 90 years, crossing over to the spirit realm surrounded by family in the light of the harvest full moon at the dawn of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, October 2022. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214825124-FULTA0TXNPCIH5RG3GTD/Pluma_HH_03.jpg CatchLight Dancers manifesting the story of soldaderas — women soldiers of the Mexican Revolution — in San Antonio, Texas. Some soldaderas rose to the level of commanders, while others played a supporting role. They were a mix of volunteers and those forced into service. Many were seeking vengeance for loved ones killed by the Federal Army, and some took on male identities. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214825757-35HW7SADPEZXZRFHYJZA/Pluma_HH_04.jpg CatchLight A parade in Harlandale County, San Antonio, Texas, honoring descendants of the "Mission Indians". "Indian" remains a common term in the region to refer to the indigenous people of North America. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214827320-63XO9GW79NYLRX600EWI/Pluma_HH_05.jpg CatchLight My grandfather Victor Vallejo Guerrero (right) with his brother Raul ("Roy") Guerrero at one of the acequias (aqueducts) built hundreds of years ago to water the missions of San Antonio. Victor and Roy would lift the gates along some of the smaller irrigation channels to water their uncle's farm. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214827422-1HPPFL0VBP2X1BG1931B/Pluma_HH_06.jpg CatchLight Coahuiltecans preparing for an overnight ceremony on the grounds of Mission San Juan Capistrano, San Antonio, Texas. The proceedings of the ceremony are secret and sacred, though I can share that songs and rituals were performed around a fire until dawn. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214829050-TQGCB3M351FN4WAWMULY/Pluma_HH_07.jpg CatchLight Members of the Tap Pilam Coahuiltecan Nation disassembling a tipi after an all-night ceremony on the grounds of Mission San Juan. The tipi is not typically used by my people, though in this instance proved to be an acceptable representative temporary structure. Many Indigenous cultures borrow from adjacent cultures today (differing from more organic cultural exchange through migration and trade) for many reasons — so much of our cultures has been forcibly eradicated, the requisite materials might prove too costly or otherwise unavailable, or those seeking to connect to their ancestors may not have detailed knowledge of how to continue and preserve their traditions. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214829231-H6YR6WIAYKER7H1T7WMQ/Pluma_HH_08.jpg CatchLight Returning the earth to where it was dug out for a fire circle, used during the overnight ceremony. The bell tower of Mission San Juan can be seen in the background. This mission was one of five my people were ultimately forced to build and reside in through coercion, then violence. The cultural genocide which ensued removed many of our traditions and practices from memory and history. It is my hope that this project can work to preserve what remains. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214831139-1MFIHY9E2U1FIL0RM4B7/Pluma_HH_09.jpg CatchLight An open acequia gate on a farm adjacent to one of San Antonio’s missions. The water is irrigated from the San Antonio River, called Yanaguana, the up-flowing waters of the spirit, by the Payaya / Coahuitecans. Our histories describe the headwaters of the river as the source of all life. Efforts are growing to document, preserve, and re-introduce original place names. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214831145-REN2SFO5JVL51I8YM9IY/Pluma_HH_10.jpg CatchLight Linda Graf-Wilcox, a mission descendant and knowledge keeper who lived on mission land before our ancestral home was taken from us. Linda shared stories of her time growing up here at Mission San Juan Capistrano, one of five missions established by Spanish colonists in the 18th century. The missions are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. That status was obtained partially through a misleading emphasis on the kindness and benevolence of the Franciscan missionaries who colonized this land. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214832729-7YG0RFDRY9ITDEVND9ZW/Pluma_HH_11.jpg CatchLight Epifanio Hernandez, a leader and knowledge keeper for a band of Coahuiltecans, at a smudging ceremony at the Indigenous Peoples Festival in San Antonio, Texas. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214833584-WPWZ78XLGNRR16EBMRO5/Pluma_HH_12.jpg CatchLight Pecan shells found along the acequias of the San Antonio River. Pecans have been a critical food source for the Indigenous people of the region for thousands of years. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214836439-IKZX1OF68769U5CKUD9K/Pluma_HH_13.jpg CatchLight Ancestors from my grandmother's family posing for a formal portrait. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214835745-XVR0GYJ5DKA3QG6FG41O/Pluma_HH_14.jpg CatchLight Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller conducts mass to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the founding of Mission San José, the mission which sits on the land taken from my ancestors, who built the missions and lived on this land since time immemorial. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214837236-ANTYMPNSEF1UUPSPFFDR/Pluma_HH_15.jpg CatchLight Mary Ann Garcia shares images from her youth in the Catholic school on mission grounds. Like others, she shared stories of the violence inflicted on students who spoke Spanish, around 200 years after Spanish colonists would likely have been doing the same to anyone speaking the Indigenous languages of the region. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214838786-IBUQHCTHR01B6OKB1IIE/Pluma_HH_16.jpg CatchLight A commemoration for Blas Maria Herrera, often described as the “Paul Revere” of the Texas Revolution, with costumed re-enactors and cannon fire. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214839471-L3A7OV78MVHMJ9PPM84N/Pluma_HH_17.jpg CatchLight A document from the archive of the National Park Service stating, in part: “An unimpeded view of the ritual from all points in the church ws desired; among Indians, the clergy wished to maintain the congretation under surveillance.“ https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214840082-W92SLMOBUPE4V66ESLYH/Pluma_HH_18.jpg CatchLight Susan Snow, Lead National Park Service Archaeologist for the San Antonio Missions, showing small fragments of bones and other components of pottery which demonstrate that the historical population of the San Antonio Missions was not an homogenous one, but rather a melting pot of peoples from the greater region who would often travel or migrate across vast distances. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214841477-HG26DOGGWR9ODZV66EKV/Pluma_HH_19.jpg CatchLight My grandfather, Victor Vallejo, was among the last generation to live on Mission San José land before it was fully taken from us. He did not know until this moment that a smaller building on mission grounds still housed examples of the tiles he would help to make at the mission when he was a child. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214843216-TEHR4OYLSW1MKFRBZQ40/Pluma_HH_20.jpg CatchLight My great great grandfather's personal journal, where he shares his story of migration from Mexico to San Antonio. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214842935-1QIRQLRQ1764COUIC1V6/Pluma_HH_21.jpg CatchLight A young girl moving through the church at Mission San Jose following mass. The church building was reclaimed by the Catholic Church and remains an active parish. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214844676-Y8ME9ARSKYD19N0ZKD3F/Pluma_HH_22.jpg CatchLight The Mexico / United States border in El Paso, Texas. A playground is nearby along the highway on the U.S. side. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214844817-TOWU7492QG3FR2IEXGEC/Pluma_HH_23.jpg CatchLight A design mockup for an augmented reality application which will guide users around Mission San José as they explore the grounds in search of interactive stories. An off-site mode will be an option for those who are not able to visit the missions, with navigable panoramic views simulating the experience of exploring the grounds and finding these AR story fragments. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214845652-M6GEJCSUT6DLEYTRVDE7/Pluma_HH_24.jpg CatchLight A design mockup for an augmented reality application which will guide users around Mission San José as they explore the grounds in search of interactive stories. Visitors to the San Antonio Missions will be able to explore hidden, non-linear stories connecting contemporary oral history + images with historical records + archives. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5dcf51d8071e1b18b09c2477/1706214845786-7AP7HZG1CCG45RI8Q9ID/Pluma_HH_25.jpg CatchLight A design mockup for an augmented reality application which will guide users around Mission San José as they explore the grounds in search of interactive stories, oral histories, and historical fragments. Users will be able to gather a personal archive of story elements they encounter to engage with after they have left the missions.