Becoming L uis: A Photo Essay on Growing up in B olivia

L uis is an A ymara boy whom I have known since his birth in 1996. Although he and his mother were not initially central to my research on migration in the A ndes, they belong to the family I worked with in E l A lto, B olivia. During a return visit ten years later, I recognized the importance of his story within my research, and thus reviewed my field notes and photo library to find images and stories about them. Photography plays a major role in my research, as I use images as mementos as well as stimuli for discussion. With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight and 15 years' distance, L uis and B asilia represent the quintessential migrant experience, one I may have overlooked if I had not asked new questions of old data.