Providencia, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2002


Wood structured and walled shacks are slowly being replaced by brick and concrete constructions. The community established at Providencia Hill is considered to be the first "favela" built in Rio de Janeiro. Its first inhabitants were soldiers of the Canudos (1893-97) campaign who camped and settled near the War Ministry waiting for their paychecks.

Jacarezinho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2001

The community of Jacarezinho bloomed near an industrial region of Rio de Janeiro during the 1960's. It is considered the second largest "favela" of Rio. All the industries were relocated elsewhere during the 1990's, taking the jobs with them. This stairway in Jacarezinho is colorfully decorated with broken ceramic tiles.

Artist Statement:
Brazilian slaves were "freed" in 1888, because plantation owners worked out that it would be cheaper to hire Afro-Brazilian or European labourers. Almost 8 million people were simply turned loose on the roads. No housing, placement, education, job opportunities or health care were provided. The "favelas" were formed by groups of slaves that moved to the cities in search of job opportunities. This culture of exclusion created problems of its own that are the roots of today's violent drug and gang culture. Exclusion is the creative force behind the parallel world of the "favelas": parallel power, parallel economy, parallel society, parallel lives. The city exposes its permanently open wounds, and, in the third world, the consequences of an idealized past that excludes significant population groups. Architecture and landscape photographs are straightforward observations of marks that time and use, wear and tear, leave on the walls and on nature - indoors and outdoors, on the furniture, on the floor, on the shoreline, in the woods - mementoes of life that inexorably move on. Images taken with respect for the dignity of the inhabitants and the natural elements can be important tools for integration, respect and improvement of inter-human relations and with the environment. Photographs taken to observe and allow others to perceive dignity in personal, social or natural diversity. "Those who don't know, cannot go in". I photograph constructions from the slums - "favelas" - of Rio de Janeiro in the same manner I would photograph a monument or a wealthy home. I use architectural photography to make a statement about the people who dwell in such spaces. These images attempt to show the human dignity of the "favela" dwellers, in spite of all the difficulties faced by those who have no other choice but to live in these excluded communities. Most of the Brazilian middle class has never set foot inside a "favela". It has no idea of the parallel universe that exists in such places. These images reflect the responsibility with which I use my work. They are not about crime, or criminals, poverty, or misery, but about human beings who found, or placed themselves in extremely adverse situations and decided not to give up the struggle for a dignified existence.  -Pedro Lobo


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