Note from BW of Brazil: These are the sorts of projects that we absolutely adore! Anyone who has ever been to the northeastern state of Bahia was surely captivated by the natural beauty of the region as well as its beautiful Afro-Brazilian population. As any reader who has spent any time checking out this blog can attest to, Brazil as a whole has a problem expressing pride, appreciation and respect for its population that is descended from Africa brought to the nation that would later become known as Brazil. And its a shame. Brazilians love to speak of the diversity of its people but insists on showing only those whose physical attributes most closely resemble that of Europeans. More projects such as the one below are necessary because if the people don’t do the work themselves, Brazil has repeatedly shown that it won’t!
Photographer shows the beauty of Bahia through the black community
Bahia, among so many aspects that draws attention, also retains the title of the state title with the highest concentration of blacks outside of Africa. For the photographer Jeferson Lima this is simply wonderful – and he has a project of portraits to show just that beauty.
Although many of his pictures have as protagonist the model Luma Nascimento, Jeferson’s goal is to show the essence of Salvador through the black community. The results of his clicks are posted on Instagram@Soteropolitane.se and already has more than a year of work.
Jeferson’s project gained notoriety at a time when the black Brazilian community is showing more pride. In 2015, more Brazilians identified themselves as blacks in comparison to ten years ago.
The change, first noticed in 2007, is not related to the dates of birth of respondents. Sociologists believe that this is due to a more positive attitude in relation the black community.
“It was clear that soteropolitanos (natives of Salvador) went through a stage of low self-esteem and had to urgently create a plan of action for us to return to exhale the joy of always,” said Jeferson. In the words of photographer, Soteropolitane.se is a “cultural experience of love for the soteropolitana soul.”
Source: Fashion Bubbles
These pictures are beautiful… especially the one of the sista with the orange and white headwrap.