“Hechos y Desechos” by KT Alexander

The Hechos y Desechos Zine began as a poem, “El Salvador, a savior, a spectacle.” The zine was created after spending five weeks living in San Salvador, El Salvador, and experiencing life after the State of Exception was declared in 2019, a now permanent “state of emergency” created under the guise of mitigating a gang crisis that has resulted in a consolidation of power under Nayib Bukele. The project attempts to synthesize facts and situate the present moment within the longer history of United States involvement in Salvadoran politics. Through collage, poetry, and data, the zine reflects on how narratives of safety, order, and nationalism are constructed and circulated. Hechos y Desechos (facts and undoings) is both documentation and analysis, gathering the information, contradictions, and stories that shape contemporary understandings of El Salvador, ultimately asking: Who is Nayib Bukele making El Salvador safe for?

About the Artist-Writer
KT is a queer Salvadoran-American artist based in Miami. Their multidisciplinary practice explores identity and histories of displacement through analog collage, photography, filmmaking, performance, and poetry. With an emphasis on historical memory and collective healing, they are interested in cultivating spaces of reflection and care for those living between languages, borders, and definitions. Their work has been featured in galleries across the United States, including Information Space (PA) and Superchief Gallery (FL) during Art Basel Miami. In 2025, they presented their first solo show, Más Tiempo Que Vida, at Museo de la Palabra y la Imagen in San Salvador, El Salvador. Their short film, Nixtamalizado, is an Official Selection and won Best Salvadoran Short Documentary at the 2025 Utopías y Memorias Festival. Their poetry has been featured at the Museum of Contemporary Art in North Miami.

Details
5” × 7” / 12 pages / Risograph / Bright red + black / Pink cover