Briana Cerezo

Tribe
We live in a disconnected culture. Technology, modern conveniences and consumerism distract us from being present with each other, ourselves and the natural world. In our culturally and religiously diverse society, our personal rituals and traditions are often different and separate from those around us, and the sense of purpose and reverence that historically accompanied intentional activities and rites of passage is now typically overshadowed by an emphasis on the acquisition of material things. This project aims to counter these places we have arrived as a culture.
I was inspired by the daily rituals of the nomadic Surma and Mursi tribes in the Omo Valley of Africa, who creatively decorate one another’s naked bodies using natural pigments and plant materials. I set out to recreate this decoration ritual with found plants and body paints dyed with natural pigments. I invited a small group of people to participate on the autumnal equinox in observance of the changing of the seasons. It was my aim to create an intentional experience that would encourage fearless creativity using natural materials, revitalize a relationship to our natural environment, and invoke a sense of community through shared experience and intimate human connection.
Collaborators // Akela Auer, Grace Eucker, William Ylvisaker, Kirsten Dukes & Kya Bliss