Krulik's interest in documenting religious festivals and customs may stem, paradoxically, from the complete absence of any religious education in her own upbringing. Though her mother comes from a Jewish family while her father received a Catholic education in Francoist Spain, both parents were always very clear about their own atheism.
Influenced by the work of French anthropologist and photographer Pierre Verger, Krulik’s curiosity was piqued during her first trip to Brazil in 1988 when she fell in love with this vast country for its ethnic, cultural and religious diversity. Camdomblé was her first encounter with Afro-Brazilian religious syncretism.
Krulik documents these events as a way of getting to know the traditions of a people, their customs and their beliefs; her most fundamental precept is to be respectful of those she portrays, creating empathy with her subjects and often building lasting bonds. The aspect of faith that most draws her attention is seeking to understand what it is that moves people to follow one religious doctrine or another.
Candomblé
Candomblé is an Afro-Brazilian religion originally practised by enslaved people forcibly taken to Brazil from their homelands in Africa, based on the worship of gods and goddesses called orixás – each one being an immaterial force present in nature, associated with a natural element such as fire, earth, river, sea, etc., and each characterised by a particular set of colours and objects that serve to represent it. Syncretism gave rise to the priests and priestesses of Candomblé, the pai-de-santo and mãe-de-santo whom people consult on important matters, much as one might go to see a healer or a seer; everybody is claimed at birth by their own orixá, whose identity can later be determined at a ceremony conducted by the pai and mãe-de-santo.
Candomblé is an Afro-Brazilian religion originally practised by enslaved people forcibly taken to Brazil from their homelands in Africa, based on the worship of gods and goddesses called orixás – each one being an immaterial force present in nature, associated with a natural element such as fire, earth, river, sea, etc., and each characterised by a particular set of colours and objects that serve to represent it. Syncretism gave rise to the priests and priestesses of Candomblé, the pai-de-santo and mãe-de-santo whom people consult on important matters, much as one might go to see a healer or a seer; everybody is claimed at birth by their own orixá, whose identity can later be determined at a ceremony conducted by the pai and mãe-de-santo.
Every October, in Belém do Pará, millions of devotees honour Our Lady of Nazaré, the patron saint of the Amazon.
Celebrations begin as early as August and continue until at least two weeks after the crowning moment, on the second Sunday of October, when a wooden image of Our Lady is carried in one of the world's largest religious processions, from Sé Cathedral to Sanctuary Square. Vast numbers of pilgrims travel from across Brazil to attend this festival, which combines both sacred and profane elements and incorporates numerous elements reflecting the rich multicultural character of Brazilian society – including indigenous Amazonian culture, with its cuisine and crafts such as the ubiquitous toys carved from the wood of the local palm trees. There are altars everywhere, built by devotees in their homes, in shops, bars, markets, town halls and other public places.
Celebrations begin as early as August and continue until at least two weeks after the crowning moment, on the second Sunday of October, when a wooden image of Our Lady is carried in one of the world's largest religious processions, from Sé Cathedral to Sanctuary Square. Vast numbers of pilgrims travel from across Brazil to attend this festival, which combines both sacred and profane elements and incorporates numerous elements reflecting the rich multicultural character of Brazilian society – including indigenous Amazonian culture, with its cuisine and crafts such as the ubiquitous toys carved from the wood of the local palm trees. There are altars everywhere, built by devotees in their homes, in shops, bars, markets, town halls and other public places.
Holy Week in Spain is one of the Christian religious festivals whose traditions date back to the Middle Ages. Processions or liturgical rituals are organised in innumerable towns and cities, where celebrants accompany a wooden statue of a religious figure carried on a frame adorned with candles and flowers; the whole float is known as a paso or “passage”, and each procession commemorates a particular moment of the Biblical narrative.
Typical of Holy Week processions are the “Nazarenes”, celebrants who wear a capirote – a tall, conical hat with a hood covering the face; like all participants in the processions, they belong to cofradías or “brotherhoods” – associations of Catholic devotees, each with its focus on a particular denomination or order pertaining to Christ, the Virgin or a particular saint.
The Day of the Dead is celebrated throughout Mexico, with variations depending on the region or state. It comes from a blend between Catholic religious rituals and pre-Hispanic indigenous customs; the celebrations take place on the 1st and 2nd of November, with the first day (corresponding to All Saints Day) dedicated to those who died as children, while the second day is for the “Faithful Dead” – that is to say, those who died as adults.
Every year, many families set up altars decorated with marigold flowers and offerings such as confetti, sugar skulls, pan de muerto or “bread of the dead”, mole sauces or some dish that was a favourite with the relative to whom the offering is dedicated. The perfume of burning incense fills the air, just as it did in centuries past.