The Dancing Devils of Chuao

My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

Venezuela | Friday, November 4, 2011 | 5 photos

I love to travel and document the world I see. It’s my passion. I enjoy showing people what more is out there, as I discover it myself. I hope that my photos educate and inspire people, and that the more they know and appreciate the world, the more of this world I believe can be saved – or changed.

The better I am at capturing these images, the more effective I will be in communicating these messages and inspiring action. I think photography can make a difference in the world. Not everyone takes the time to read. But in an instant, a picture really can tell a thousand words, or more. It can educate, inspire, inform, or even disgust. But whatever message it tells, it can tell it stronger than any written version.

I am continually learning with my photography, and the more I learn, it sometimes feels like the less I know!

My dream is to work for National Geographic as a photographer – I see this competition as an opportunity to get a foot in the door of that dream….and once my foot is in, I don’t intend moving it until I’m inside!

My set of photos are all taken on 35mm colour positive slide film, and then scanned. I don’t believe a scan can do the slide justice compared to when the original is projected, but I have done my best to keep the images as accurate as possible given my limited post-processing skills.

Although I mostly shoot digital now, I love the purity of slide film. There is no manipulation possible after the fact – what you shot at the time in the field is what you have. It is so unforgiving that it forces you to shoot correctly, and not rely on any software manipulation.

Every Corpus Christi (nine Thursdays after Holy Thursday), a ritual dance is performed by the so called "Dancing Devils" in the town of Chuao, in north western Venezuela, on the Caribbean coast. The town of Chuao can only be reached by boat – there are no roads in or out.

In this festival based on folklore, devotion is given to the patron saint Saint Francis of Paola, to the Blessed Sacrament and to Jesus Christ. The devoted disguised as devils perform dances around the principal square of the town. They also parade through the streets, dressed in their costumes and their masks, dancing to the rhythm of musical poems and drums.
Later on, they move towards the front of the church and a sort of fight representation begins between the devils and the guardians. Finally, the devils surrender and lay in front of the church to show submission. The entire performance represents the victory of Good over Evil.