Jouvert (Labor Day in Brooklyn)

These photographs were taken during J’ouvert festivities held every Labor Day in Brooklyn and are part of an ongoing body of work focusing on the celebration of carnival throughout the African Diaspora as a distinct form of African cultural expression.

Although carnival is believed to have originated in Europe and is usually celebrated during Christian holidays such as Christmas and Lent, J’ouvert and other afro-carnival festivals throughout the Diaspora have no organic connection to Christianity and should be seen as distinct African celebrations. For enslaved Africans the western calendar and European holidays provided the perfect opportunity to celebrate their ancestral traditions as an act of rebellion.

Once considered the poor man’s carnival because of the absence of the shiny costumes of more mainstream parades, during J’ouvert or “dutty mas” creativity is encouraged. Revelers take to the streets covered in oil, dirt and paint and are dressed in rag tag outfits, losing themselves in a theatre of the imagination. Fueled by a zest for living, celebrants relish in this feast of the flesh without guilt or shame. Amidst the frenzied atmosphere I have witnessed a collective pride among people of various nationalities connected by a ritual that is uniquely theirs.