Vaqueros de La Cruz del Diablo

Werner Segarra, Laura Emilia Pacheco

Cowboys of La Cruz del Diablo is a photographic work that Werner Segarra (Puerto Rico, lives and works in Phoenix, AZ) has done with thoroughness since 1982 when, almost by accident, he arrived at the Sierra de Sonora, in northern Mexico, and was captivated by the landscape, people and cowboy culture. The history of the Sonoran cowboys goes back to the 16th century when the first specimens of cattle arrived in northwestern Mexico. With the subsequent presence of the Jesuits on the banks of the Yaqui began the livestock activity. This conjunction of events triggered the emergence of a world that found its roots in Sonora and from there it extended to some states of what is now the southern United States but was previously the territory of Mexico. That is why there are those who affirm that the cowboy is an authentic and original Mexican character.