Editorial: Photo Essay / Story (PROFESSIONAL) - HONORABLE MENTION
Portraits of Umbanda
Photo © Adriano Hultmann
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Portraits of Umbanda is a photographic immersion into the UMBANDA religion, a mystic fusion of African traditions with Roman Catholicism, Spiritism, Candomble and Eastern philosophies.
Umbanda was founded in the early 1900s in Rio de Janeiro and spread very fast throughout Brazil. It was fronted by a disenfranchised class of African descent that, at the time, lacked a channel to express its believe and faith. The religion proliferated, transcended classes, and today has four hundred thousand of Umbandistas and several tens of thousand of terreiros, the “headquarters” where these rites are held. Despite all the religious freedom present in Brazil, UMBANDA is still ostracized and falls victim to several violent attacks on a regular basis.
Umbanda is centered on the evolution of the soul (of the living) or the spirit (of the dead), and is segmented in Seven Lineages, each represented by its own Orisha, an African ancestor that has been made divine and which represents the power of Nature. Umbanda stipulates that each human being lives around a vibrational field that steers one’s life. This vibrational field’s frequency is determined by one’s choices and attitude in life, and it can be directed towards good or evil, at one’s own resolution and freewill.
During ceremonies, there is visible interaction between people and entities, understood as spirits of those who have passed, incorporated by the medium, who uses his or her body as a channel between the physical and spiritual worlds, offering consultations from high above to those who seek them.
These photos are a homage to the love, light and power expressed by the Orishas and to all of those who sustain the terreiros all over Brazil.
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Portraits of Umbanda is a photographic immersion into the UMBANDA religion, a mystic fusion of African traditions with Roman Catholicism, Spiritism, Candomble and Eastern philosophies.
Umbanda was founded in the early 1900s in Rio de Janeiro and spread very fast throughout Brazil. It was fronted by a disenfranchised class of African descent that, at the time, lacked a channel to express its believe and faith. The religion proliferated, transcended classes, and today has four hundred thousand of Umbandistas and several tens of thousand of terreiros, the “headquarters” where these rites are held. Despite all the religious freedom present in Brazil, UMBANDA is still ostracized and falls victim to several violent attacks on a regular basis.
Umbanda is centered on the evolution of the soul (of the living) or the spirit (of the dead), and is segmented in Seven Lineages, each represented by its own Orisha, an African ancestor that has been made divine and which represents the power of Nature. Umbanda stipulates that each human being lives around a vibrational field that steers one’s life. This vibrational field’s frequency is determined by one’s choices and attitude in life, and it can be directed towards good or evil, at one’s own resolution and freewill.
During ceremonies, there is visible interaction between people and entities, understood as spirits of those who have passed, incorporated by the medium, who uses his or her body as a channel between the physical and spiritual worlds, offering consultations from high above to those who seek them.
These photos are a homage to the love, light and power expressed by the Orishas and to all of those who sustain the terreiros all over Brazil.
About author:
I was born in Curitiba, Brazil and have lived in NYC for half of my life. After seeking my Masters degree in Photography from the School of Visual Arts/NY, I have exhibited my work in several Exhibitions in New York and Brazil. I’m inspired my relentless pursuit for documenting the intangible and invisible marvels of the human spirit.BACK TO GALLERY
