Africa’s presence and ongoing influence throughout Brazil – from religious practices to countless cultural traditions – is immeasurable. And just as with every other country built on the backs of African slaves, issues of race and class continue to be volatile and controversial. Slavery existed in Brazil for over three hundred years, only legally abolished in 1888 (Brazil was the last country in the Americas to officially dismantle it,) though the reality of black life continued – and in many ways continues – to be testimony to the resilient afterlife of slavery. But resistance is at the core of Afro-Brazilian life and culture, and photographer Edgar Azevedo is only the latest Brazilian creative to celebrate and document the beauty and strength of the people.
AfroPunk.com recently ran a spread of Azevedo’s photographs, and linked to his Facebook page, where he writes, “My pictures should say it all. My work tells what kind of photographer I am.” (They also link to his blog which, unfortunately, is only open to people who’ve been invited to read it.)
See more of Azevedo’s work here.
Read more about Brazil’s history of slavery and resistance here and here.
All images by Edgar Azevedo
