Mabru Rodrigues | Renaissance

The vibrant culture in Rio de Janeiro is a melting pot of creativity, sun and samba. The people of Brazil delight in self expression which has seen them adored by people the world over. But like everything that gleams, there is always a dark underbelly.

Few artists capture the growing essence of female empowerment and the kaleidoscopic range of blackness in Brazil like Mabru Rodrigues - a champion in lifting the veil that has clouded Brazil since its colonial roots. A graduate of the Performing Arts, the self-taught photographer creates artistic works that enable her to express herself as she studies to communicate to the world through her photography.

The Renaissance series explores the connection of the black woman with her roots, her hair playing the role of the protagonist and symbolism for resistance. The feminine moment, the union, the force and what it means to be woman represented inside and outside of a maternal relationship.