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\nSerge Guiraud<\/a>, photographer, documentary film maker, ethnographer and specialist in Brazil tribal populations, has been traveling the\u00a0<\/span>Amazon<\/a>\u00a0basin for three years to study the relationships between these unique populations and the \u201coutside world\u201d. Serge also accompanies PONANT guests on selected tropical expeditions as an expert ethnologist and today is sharing his amazing experiences with indigenous populations in the Amazon.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d background_enable_color=\u201doff\u201d background_enable_image=\u201doff\u201d width=\u201d100%\u201d width_tablet=\u201d\u201d width_phone=\u201d\u201d width_last_edited=\u201don|phone\u201d max_width=\u201d1000px\u201d module_alignment=\u201dcenter\u201d custom_padding=\u201d||5px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_column type=\u201d4_4\u2033 _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d background_enable_color=\u201doff\u201d background_enable_image=\u201doff\u201d background_size=\u201dcontain\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_image src=\u201dhttps:\/\/escales.ponant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/serge-amazon-900\u00d7600-1.png\u201d alt=\u201dserge-amazon-900\u00d7600\u2033 title_text=\u201dserge-amazon-900\u00d7600\u2033 align=\u201dcenter\u201d _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d max_width=\u201d900px\u201d custom_padding=\u201d0px||0px||true|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_column type=\u201d4_4\u2033 _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u201d4.27.5\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d header_2_font=\u201d|300|||||||\u201d header_2_text_color=\u201d#334556\u2033 header_2_font_size=\u201d38px\u201d custom_padding=\u201d0px||40px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d]<\/p>\n
What are the most unique cultural traditions you have experienced in the\u00a0<\/span>Amazon<\/a>?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
The most unique traditions I have experienced were those I witnessed in the one year that I spent with the Yawalapiti people located in the Xingu National Park in Mato Grosso, Brazil. I was able to establish a privileged relationship with various personalities in this community, both friendly and sometimes confrontational. During my stay, I witnessed the entire funeral cycle, from death to the end of mourning. Being very often the only foreigner in the village, I \u201cparticipated\u201d in the different stages which limit this particular period: daily discussions at dusk in the men\u2019s house, shamanic cures, preparations for ceremonies, body painting sessions, outings in the forest, ritual fishing, etc.<\/p>\n
My local guides helped me interpret all these events and educated me on the myths. Writing these few lines, I am reminded of two unique moments, at least for a non-Yawalapiti. The first took place in the men\u2019s house. After each dance, the \u201cmaster of ceremonies\u201d is responsible for providing food (fish porridge and cassava) to the participants. While I had been participating in these banquets for months, Aritana, the great leader, approached me and said to me: \u201cYou see Serge, this food we eat, we share it with the spirits. You do not see them, but they are among us\u201d. These words made me realise the complexity of the cultural beliefs of each of these unique indigenous societies.<\/p>\n
The second event took place during a traditional fishing session, which consists of beating liana vines against the water, to release a poison, that impairs the fish\u2019s respiratory system, suffocating them. The village shamans had an important role in this ritual, as it was them who contacted the \u201cmaster of the fish\u201d to ask him for permission to fish. The shamans sitting on the bank of the river puffed on their cigars, smoking them to enter a modified state of consciousness. Returning from their \u201cjourney\u201d they threw an unidentified substance into the water. After a few minutes, as if by magic, the fish jumped from all sides, symbolising that the \u201cmaster of fish\u201d had given his permission to fish.<\/p>\n
What inspired you to write your books on the people of the Amazon?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
An ethnologist performs a field mission during which he observes and records everything that is happening in the society studied, from lighting a fire or fetching water from the river to ceremonies, everything is the subject of written notes. Back home, an ethnologist analyses the information and uses the research collected to write articles for publications, like any scientist. My work mainly involves capturing images (photos or video) and is called visual anthropology. Each year at least one of my videos is presented to the public. This does not exempt me from writing though. Publishing books and articles is a way to reach a different audience and to also develop certain anthropological concepts. Although, in the articles I write, a large part is reserved for iconography, visual images and illustrations.<\/span><\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=\u201dGalerie\u201d _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d width=\u201d100%\u201d max_width=\u201d100%\u201d custom_padding=\u201d0px||40px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_column type=\u201d4_4\u2033 _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_gallery gallery_ids=\u201d2966,3032,3034,3036,3038,3040,3042\u2033 posts_number=\u201d6\u2033 show_title_and_caption=\u201doff\u201d show_pagination=\u201doff\u201d module_class=\u201dgal-col\u201d _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][\/et_pb_gallery][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d text_font=\u201d||on||||||\u201d text_text_color=\u201d#767676\u2033 text_font_size=\u201d12px\u201d background_color=\u201drgba(0,0,0,0)\u201d text_orientation=\u201dcenter\u201d custom_padding=\u201d||5px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d]Alter do Ch\u00e3o, Brazil \u2013 \u00a9 Servane Roy Berton \u2013 Karaja people, Brazil \u2013 \u00a9 Serge Guiraud \u2013 Karaja people, Brazil \u2013 \u00a9 Serge Guiraud \u2013 Kayapo people from the Amazon, Brazil \u2013 \u00a9 Serge Guiraud \u2013 Patax\u00f3 people, Brazil \u2013 \u00a9 Serge Guiraud \u2013 Yawalapiti people from the Amazon, Brazil \u2013 \u00a9 Serge Guiraud[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d max_width=\u201d900px\u201d custom_padding=\u201d0px||0px||true|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_column type=\u201d4_4\u2033 _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d header_2_font=\u201d|300|||||||\u201d header_2_text_color=\u201d#334556\u2033 header_2_font_size=\u201d38px\u201d custom_padding=\u201d0px||40px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d]<\/p>\n
What aspects of the culture of Amazon tribal populations fascinates you the most?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
What interests me in these tribal cultures are the relationships they have with the invisible. This makes it hard for a photographer and anthropologist like me! In Amazon societies, like others around the world, they are made up of much more than just humans. There are animals, plants, the sky, stars, mountains, rivers, and a whole legion of supernatural entities. In the West it is interpreted as \u201cliving in harmony\u201d with the environment, making these relationships more complex. I have seen these populations cut down a tree just to pick the fruit. This universe, populated by the supernatural, can be dangerous for humans. It is therefore necessary to entrust specialists and shamans in the role of intermediaries and mediators between people and the spirits. The lives of individuals are constantly disturbed by these entities, as they are believed to be able to inoculate disease or cause death. So it is necessary to coax them by offering, for example, large banquets, to attract their good graces.<\/p>\n
What is fascinating is observing how these societies, who have access to our industrialised objects, continue in these times of profound changes. Will this change the unique way they perceive the world and how or will they adapt or change their cultural beliefs and traditions as a result of these industrial advancements?<\/p>\n
<\/em><\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d background_enable_color=\u201doff\u201d background_enable_image=\u201doff\u201d width=\u201d100%\u201d width_tablet=\u201d\u201d width_phone=\u201d\u201d width_last_edited=\u201don|phone\u201d max_width=\u201d1000px\u201d module_alignment=\u201dcenter\u201d custom_padding=\u201d||5px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_column type=\u201d4_4\u2033 _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d background_enable_color=\u201doff\u201d background_enable_image=\u201doff\u201d background_size=\u201dcontain\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_image src=\u201dhttps:\/\/escales.ponant.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/zodiac-amazon-river-1200\u00d7700-1-1.png\u201d alt=\u201dzodiac-amazon-river-1200\u00d7700-1\u2033 title_text=\u201dzodiac-amazon-river-1200\u00d7700-1\u2033 align=\u201dcenter\u201d _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d text_font=\u201d||on||||||\u201d text_text_color=\u201d#767676\u2033 text_font_size=\u201d12px\u201d background_color=\u201drgba(0,0,0,0)\u201d text_orientation=\u201dcenter\u201d custom_padding=\u201d||3px||false|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d]PONANT guests exploring the Amazon river by Zodiac\u00ae \u2013 \u00a9 Servane Roy Berton[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=\u201d2_5,3_5\u2033 admin_label=\u201dMEA \u2013 decalage\u201d _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d max_width=\u201d1000px\u201d custom_padding=\u201d18px||18px||true|false\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_column type=\u201d2_5\u2033 _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d background_enable_color=\u201doff\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d][et_pb_text _builder_version=\u201d4.16\u2033 _module_preset=\u201ddefault\u201d header_2_font=\u201d|300|on||||||\u201d header_2_text_align=\u201dleft\u201d header_2_text_color=\u201d#ffffff\u201d header_2_line_height=\u201d1.4em\u201d background_color=\u201d#307f90\u2033 custom_margin=\u201d|-30%|||false|false\u201d custom_margin_tablet=\u201d|0%|||false|false\u201d custom_margin_phone=\u201d\u201d custom_margin_last_edited=\u201don|tablet\u201d custom_padding=\u201d30px|75%|30px|20px|true|false\u201d custom_padding_tablet=\u201d|20px|||true|false\u201d custom_padding_phone=\u201d\u201d custom_padding_last_edited=\u201don|tablet\u201d global_colors_info=\u201d{}\u201d theme_builder_area=\u201dpost_content\u201d]<\/p>\n
Get to know Serge<\/h2>\n
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