Cimarron: Freedom and Masquerade

Cimarron is a new series of photographic portraits of African slaves and their descendants that celebrate and keep alive the history and memory of African slaves and their creole or mixed-race descendants. The photographs record real people whose collective sense of memory, folk history, and imagination challenges our expectations.

Format: Hardback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 28 March 2019
Publisher: Thames & Hudson Ltd

From the 16th century onwards, a significant number of enslaved Africans in the Americas managed to escape their captors and embark on their own journeys of freedom. These runaway individuals, having tasted the exhilaration of liberation, chose to establish their own communities or forge new identities by joining indigenous peoples. A captivating new series of photographic portraits titled "Cimarron" seeks to capture the descendants of these fugitive former slaves. Spanning across Brazil, Colombia, the Caribbean islands, Central America, and even reaching the southern United States, elaborate masquerades are staged that celebrate and preserve the rich history and memories of African slaves and their creole or mixed-race descendants. These masquerades feature a diverse range of characters, portrayed in costume, or in grotesque or satirical representations. A breathtaking succession of African tribal dress, wild ritual regalia, and dazzling Mardi Gras outfits grace the stage, showcasing the vibrant cultural heritage of these communities. Vividly colored silks and cottons blend with woven fibers, leaves, feathers, and bodypaint, creating stunning visual compositions. Props such as emblems of slavery and slavemasters, including ropes, sticks, guns, and machetes, add an authentic touch to the scenes. These photographs, taken by Charles Fréger, document real individuals whose collective sense of memory, folk history, and imagination challenge our preconceived notions and expand our understanding of the human past and present. Fréger's remarkable work has garnered a substantial and growing following among connoisseurs of contemporary photography, solidifying his position as a pioneer in the field of documentary portraiture. Through his lens, he has created a new genre that deepens our appreciation for the complexities of human history and fosters a deeper connection between past and present.

Weight: 1248g
Dimension: 237 x 189 x 34 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780500022467