The Morro da Providencia favela is one of Rio de Janeiro's most violent neighborhoods. A French photographer named JR went to the Brazilian neighborhood to take pictures of women related to the victims of violent clashes between police and drug traffickers. He then placed the pictures on the facades of the houses as part of his global project called "Women Are Heroes." By shooting women in their daily lives and posting them on the walls of their country, he hopes to reveal female dignity.
JR has brought his project to Sudan, Sierra Leon, Kenya, and Liberia, and will soon visit India, Cambodia, Laos, and Morocco. Through his work, he believes the story of these women will travel around the world. He says, "We went to see women who had struggle in their lives. When you hear the story you're like woah, maybe the person is dead inside. But then when you ask her to do faces, then you can see life."
To see a starkly realistic video trailer for the project, read more.
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i really like that concept actually. i think that we tend to forget that there's a lot of unsettled areas in the world and that there are unsung heroes who try to make things better/safer/cleaner. i like when there are artists who do things like this. it puts a new spin on the way we see things and it's just going to raise awareness.