Escaramuza, Poetics of Home by Constance Jaeggi

Issue 179

Escaramuza, The Poetics of Home considers the Mexican tradition of escaramuza and the women practicing the sport in the United States. Escaramuza are all-female precision horse riding teams who execute exacting maneuvers while riding sidesaddle at high speed and wearing traditional Mexican attire. The tradition is part of charreria, the National Sport of Mexico and a precursor to North American rodeo. While today, women's participation is growing, women were not permitted to ride in charreria until the 1950's when the escaramuza tradition was invented.

This work explores, through photographic portraiture and poetry by Ire’ne Lara Silva and Angelina Sáenz based on interviews with the riders, how these women are reckoning with the gendered complexities of escaramuza within the charreria tradition and how it fosters a sense of belonging.

Constance Jaeggi (she/her) is from Geneva, Switzerland and lives and works between Weatherford, Texas and Denver, Colorado, United States.
www.constancejaeggi.com | @constancejaeggi