Quechua weaver in Cusco, Peru.
© Marcela Torres
By Marcela Torres
Meeting people from other countries and
cultures is part of the magic of traveling. We often encounter charming people
that share their traditions with us and we can’t resist the temptation of
capturing that moment with our photographic cameras. This enthusiastic impulse,
however, may sometimes cause an unexpected negative reaction.
Several authors warn against the danger of the “tourist gaze”. What are they talking about? Sometimes people from the local
community may feel they are being seen as objects; something weird or amazing
that must be observed.
In addition, it is no myth that several tribes
and indigenous cultures in Latin America reject photographs for several
reasons, including the belief that these would steal their soul. From northern
Mexico to southern Chile there are many accounts of communities that fear or
distrust cameras and the intentions of the people that carry them.
A professional photographer remembers the time
he arrived unannounced with some friends at a small town in the Sierra Central
in Mexico and was suddenly surrounded by children who were attracted by their
“curious” garments and attitudes. But the party ended the moment he took out
his camera and aimed at the children, who ran away terrified.
At Ciudad Perdida (Lost City), in the Sierra
Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia, due to religious and cultural reasons,
people of indigenous origin avoid having pictures taken of themselves, their
homes and their objects. Tourists are warned not to insist in order not to make
locals uncomfortable by invading their privacy.
The Mapuches, who live in southern Chile and
Argentina, also reject photographs. To them, an image has a spirit and if
someone captures it that person takes something away from them. This belief has
presented a challenge to documentary producers, who always must give signs of
respect in order to gain their trust and obtain their footage. Nevertheless,
artists often just shoot photos or videos, promising to come back and give a
copy, but never show again. It is important to understand that the Mapuches
will always ask (and sometimes demand) a token of the time they gave away a
piece of their soul. On a few occasions, people have been so offended by being
photographed that they have broken tourists’ cameras.
The case of Italian scientist Guido Boggiani
is, no doubt, the most extreme. Boggiani lived many years with the Caduveo
tribe in Paraguay and was obsessed with body paintings and tattoos, shooting
more than 500 photographs that he developed in the middle of the jungle. He was
murdered in 1902, when he was 40 years old, and –although it is not really
known for certain- it is believed that the motive was his photographic
activity, since the expedition that went looking for him found his remains
buried with his camera in pieces. After his death, a colleague of his published
a series of 100 postcards of this Paraguayan tribe, which included a selection
of 12 nude photos especially captured for scientists.
Of course, nowadays it is highly unlikely that
anyone will threaten you with death just because you took a picture of them,
but it is still worthwhile to avoid an unpleasant situation and show respect
for the other person by asking a simple question: “May I take a picture of
you?”
This entry was originally posted by the author on October 15, 2011.
