Penitentes

For almost two decades, photographer Guy Benchimol de Veloso (Belém, PA, 1969) traveled through 13 Brazilian states recording the rituals of the penitents, a secret and mystical brotherhoods that during Lent and Holy Week go out at night in procession praying for the suffering spirits. In more extreme cases, some practice self-flagellation. "The artist is a Penitent initiated into the rituals he portrays. The Penitents themselves accept him as a Penitent. Very few eyes have been granted access to the rituals he has witnessed - many of them secret and never before photographed. This access was earned slowly, over the course of more than 17 years of intense research and negotiations. He made countless trips and contact with more than 200 groups spread across 13 different states of Brazil. The highpoint of this profound dedication to the world of Penitents came when he was accepted as a follower into a centennial brotherhood in Bahia. Little by little, he became what he portrays, and this is part of the reason why his photographs have such extraordinary power." --Page [232]