Tonantzin Encuentra Todo
Aurora Yol
[Our Mother Finds Everything] (2026) is the 12th piece in my Coatlicue Series, a body of work that threads together my ancestral heritage with contemporary sociopolitical pathologies such as feminicide.
Tonantzin means “our mother” in náhuatl. This painting departs from Catholic imagery to represent contemporary Mexican issues by supporting itself on pre-Hipanic symbolism that is more fruitful for women. The first elements to strike you– the pieta pose, the Sun-halo, the symmetry – mean to link Tonantzin to our beloved Virgin of Guadalupe. The snakes are there to remind you where the Virgin of Guadalupe comes from; She was born from a strategy of religious assimilation during Spanish colonization. She is both Mother Mary and Tonantzin, which refers to all pre-Hispanic deities who possess motherly qualities, such as Coatlicue. Coatlicue, whose name means “skirt of snakes” represented life, death, and motherhood. In this painting, I represent the contemporary Mexican mother searching for her “missing” child as an embodiment of Coatlicue. This deity more accurately represents the valor searching mothers have when digging under the scorching Sun to find the dismembered remains of the victims of violence.
This piece is a meditation in finding healing, as this is a crude reality widely ignored, especially with the FIFA world cup raging in the same places these unmarked graves are being discovered.
If you wish to understand my Coatlicue Series, please download to read more
Jump to I Dream of Labor Series
Jump to Tagapag Alaga (2026)
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Coatlicue Series
Nopal (2025). Oil on canvas. 26×81″
“En Gaza practican lo que harán en tu casa”. The edible Nopal [prickly pear cactus] is endemic to Mexico and a staple of our cuisine and national identity. The now widespread genus of Opuntia has become a symbol of resistance through arduous climate. From México and Turtle Island to Falastin, down with colonial and imperial forces.
Coatlicue: La Madre II [The Mother II] (2025). Oil on canvas. 50×95″.
Coatlicue Madre de Dioses [Mother of Gods] (2025). Oil on canvas. 40×75”.
Coatlicue V (2025). Oil on canvas. 2×2’.
Su Alma [Her Soul] (2025). Oil on canvas. 38×26”.
Coatlicue: La Madre [The Mother] (2025). Charcoal on wood. 2×2’.
Coatlicue: La Santa [The Saint] (2025). Ink on paper. 10×14”.
I Dream of Labor Series
I Dream of Labor: On Line (2025). Ballpoint pen on paper. 14×20″.
(left) La Chamba [The Job] (2024). Oil on panel. 18×24″.
(right) I Like This Better (2024). Oil on panel. 18×24″
Tagapag Alaga (2026)
Tagapag Alaga highlights custodian labour, particularly of the custodians who take care of this school and its various art-dedicated facilities. As a Filipina born and raised in Mexico, the chances to connect with other people from the Philippines and explore my heritage were limited. In the fall semester of 2025, I was honored to participate in the Balikbayan Project, a mentorship program organized by Geraldine Yaris that aimed to connect emerging Filipino artists in Vancouver to this place’s history and diasporic communities. I was privileged to learn from and alongside wonderful people such as my cohort — Khim Mata Hipol, Luigi Pulido, Sophia Santos English, and anata laylay — as well as find the courage to claim my identity and work to honor it. I connected with the graceful custodian team at ECU and produced these drawings in order to represent their labour, which remains essential and underpaid in “Canada”. They are representative of the Philippines as one of the largest labor exporters in the world, and of the diasporic communities that seek employment abroad so that they may send remittances home. After the Ingat Kayo! exhibition, I brought the drawings back to the custodian team and they chose their favorites to keep.
Thank you for viewing my work!! Please reach out if you have any questions or comments!
With love,
