I Am, Still
In Ecuador, around 7% of the population is indigenous. Over the past century, racism, discrimination and inequality forced many to migrate to the city, abandoning their lands and culture. Globalization impacted the devaluation of the indigneous identity, but has also fueled an unpredictable cultural resistance in the youth who have created a new way of living and being. They decided to stay on their land, with their family, and developed a lifestyle that combines ‘modernity’ and the ancestral knowledge of past generations. I Am, Still explores a new generation of indigenous people that grew up without fear of colonialism.
“When I started this story, my childhood memories came back to me: the mountains, the family meals, and those cold mornings with the sound of water. My memories become more and more blurred, but the young people in this community did not let these experiences be a thing of the past. They fill their days with trips to the mountains, YouTube videos, education through WhatsApp, and caring for the animals,” says the photographer.
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Johanna Alarcón is an Ecuadorian freelance photographer and educator focusing on socio-cultural and gender issues, primarily in Latin America.
2020 Joop Swart Masterclass
For the first time, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the
Joop Swart Masterclass took place online over a period of four months, and 24 participants and eight masters were selected to make the program more inclusive. The educational experience of the Joop Swart Masterclass is based on an assignment to produce a photo essay around a given theme. This year the theme was ‘Reset’.
