Jaír F. Coll

Documentary photographer
   
Photoville Festival: Black Baby Jesus was born in February
Location: Cali, Colombia
Nationality: Colombia
Biography: Jaír F. Coll (1997) is a colombian visual journalist whose work focuses on culture as a factor of social transformation. His photography, both intimate and colorful, has been exhibited at the Photo Vogue Festival 2021 and was selected in... MORE
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Photoville Festival: Black Baby Jesus was born in February
jaír f. coll
Jun 9, 2022
Location: New York City
Summary
Quinamayó and its culture in Manhattan! What an great honor to be part of Photoville Festival, with my on-going-project 'Black Baby Jesus was born in February'.
My ongoing project 'Black Baby Jesus was born in February' is been exhibited in the Photoville Festival. This event returns this summer as an immersive hybrid experience, featuring over 60 public art exhibitions, inspirational walking tours, in-depth panels, and interactive workshops.

You can find my exposition in the Brooklyn Bridge Park – Pier 1 until June 26. 'Black Baby Jesus was born in February' is a story that takes place in Quinamayó, an Afro-Colombian community located in the south of the Valle del Cauca department. During the slavery trade period (the 16th century to 1851), their ancestors were not allowed to keep and celebrate any cultural expressions they had brought with them.

View on photoville.nyc ↗

Many traditions had to be adapted and resignified as a way of expressing dignity and resistance. For Christmas, they transformed the celebration, which takes place 45 days after the traditional date for the birth of Jesus Christ — representing the time it took the Virgin Mary to rest after she gave birth. Quinamayó celebrates Christmas in mid-February as a form of their African descendants’ cultural resistance and religious syncretism.

It’s a tradition that still persists in the community today, through a celebration in which the children dress up as biblical characters, the matronas — women leaders — wear their traditional dresses, and the people dance the juga, an autochthonous rhythm of Quinamayó.
Mi proyecto en curso 'El Niño Dios Negro nació en febrero' se expone en el Photoville Festival 2022. Este evento vuelve este verano como una experiencia híbrida de inmersión, con más de 60 exposiciones de arte público, recorridos a pie inspiradores, paneles en profundidad y talleres interactivos.

Puedes encontrar mi exposición en el Brooklyn Bridge Park – Pier 1 hasta el 26 de junio. 'El Niño Jesús Negro nació en febrero' es una historia que se desarrolla en Quinamayó, una comunidad afrocolombiana situada en el sur del departamento del Valle del Cauca. Durante la época de la trata de esclavos (del siglo XVI a 1851), a sus antepasados no se les permitió conservar ni celebrar las expresiones culturales que habían traído consigo.

View on photoville.nyc ↗

Muchas tradiciones tuvieron que ser adaptadas y resignificadas como forma de expresar dignidad y resistencia. Ese fue el caso de la Navidad, celebración que tiene lugar 45 días después de la fecha tradicional del nacimiento de Jesucristo, el mismo tiempo que la Virgen habría guardado dieta después del parto. Quinamayó celebra la Navidad a mediados de febrero como una forma de resistencia cultural y sincretismo religioso de sus afrodescendientes.

Es una tradición que aún persiste en la comunidad, a través de una celebración en la que los niños se disfrazan de personajes bíblicos, las matronas -mujeres líderes- visten sus trajes tradicionales, y el pueblo baila la juga, un ritmo autóctono de Quinamayó.

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Photoville Festival: Black Baby Jesus was born in February by Jaír F. Coll
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