— Gina Santi is a freelance photographer born and raised in Venezuela and currently based in Tempe, Arizona. She earned her master’s degree in Cultural Anthropology from Northern Arizona University and has participated in various events in Northern Arizona, including the annual Celebraciones de la Gente at the Museum of Northern Arizona. Visit http://www.ginasantiphotography.com for more information.
Since the early Middle Ages, Europeans feared that phantasms, ghouls, and spirits somehow found their way back to earth and do harm to people, animals, and crops during Halloween. Igniting protective fires and torches and tolling the town’s church bells were especially important on this night to whisk off the mischievous entities.
William Shakespeare brilliantly depicts the Christian beliefs about witches during those times: the three nameless witches in Macbeth embody wickedness, obscurity, madness, struggle, and have a twisted sense of scruples. Using this curse, they warn Macbeth of his upcoming troubles:
When I revisit the photographs from my recent 2-month journey through Southern Italy, I find them bursting with reminiscing details. There is something about those quickly seized moments that don’t at all seem like random samples of my ongoings: they remind me faithfully of what was so special about these minutiae, which jolt with revamped significance when I re-see what I originally saw.
Obviously, local attractions and prominent sights are a must see when traveling. But for me, it is more stimulating to see a place alongside the street. The noises, the aromas, the scenes, the ambiance, and the daily routines of the community. That is why I love using public transportation, dining at local places (the less tourists there are, the better), walking, watching people in parks, and shopping in the local markets where I can haggle. I look for small details, ordinary people, or situations I’ve never seen before but I can learn from, or maybe add to my personal inventory of activities. These, to me, are enormously more entertaining and instructive than any historic building or world-famous piece of art. The 13 explained images included in this 2024 calendar will show you very specific things from which I learned and that were enormously more entertaining and instructive to me than any scenery.
In the English language, the term Old Country is commonly used to refer to the European Continent. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, however, “old country” is a noun that refers to the country where a person was born or lived before moving to a new country. Hence, the Old Country is not the same for everyone because it depends on our individual ancestry, and it is normally used when we refer to family traditions or habits that came from our country of origin. In addition, Merriam-Webster gives us yet another definition of old: “dating from the remote past, persisting from an earlier time, of long standing, and of, relating to, or originating in a past era”, among others.
Images of the Month – May 2023 View in your browser Gina Santi Photography Images of the Month – May 2023 In English En Español The ideal type (in the German language: Idealtypus) is a concept created by Max…
Saints play a significant part in Naples’ institutions. The devotion to these saints – who alleviate pains or defend against the diseases- echoes a delicately masked polytheistic system which dates back to the foundation of the city by the Greeks about 3,000 years ago.
Naples’ agnostic fervor to idols is nowhere more epitomized than in the memorial to Argentinian soccer player Diego Armando Maradona inside Bar Nilo in Naples’ Quartiere Storico. Created from plaster and painted in blue and white -the club colors-, the altar is buried in Maradona memorabilia. Its centerpiece is a strand of Maradona’s “miraculous” hair exhibited inside a revolving, clear box. It has become a site of pilgrimage for Maradona fans all over the world, elevating the footballer to the status of a saint.
The basis for this worship is the fact that Maradona steered Naples to its single two Italian league championships in 1987 and 1990, and also the 1989 UEFA Cup. Naples had never won anything substantial before Maradona’s coming to the team, and he was treated as a redeemer by a city known for its poverty, and social struggles.
Cartagena de Indias, Cultural Heritage of Humanity, was founded in 1533 and still has a certain sumptuousness from that time: old houses of Spanish architecture with splendid central patios and bewitching balconies full of flowers. The city is all magical realism: it can be, at the same time, pearly, crimson, pink, bluish, brown, orange, purple, or emerald. In its narrow cobbled streets one can breathe legend, melancholy, gallantry, revelry, and natural beauty.
In the late afternoon, around 5:00 p.m. these colors of Cartagena become magical under the light of the tropical sunset, and the entire city becomes a colorful cacophony. The windows, the doors, the facades and walls of vibrant colors, all filled me with joy, enchanted me, and I felt like Florentino Ariza, that character of Gabriel García Márquez who thought he was dying of love. As the Colombian Nobel Prize for Literature would say in his autobiography Vivir para Contarla, “It was enough for me to take a step back inside the wall to see [Cartagena] in all its grandeur, in the light of 6 o’clock in the afternoon, and I could not repress the feeling of having been born again”
Ship Rock is an impressive 7,177-feet-high peak situated in the Navajo Nation, an autonomous territory of 28,000 square miles encompassing parts of New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah, in the United States of America. Due to the peak’s resemblance to a 19th-century clipper ships it was originally called Ship Rock, Ship Rock Peak, and Shiprock, but the name in Navajo is Tsé Bitʼaʼí, which means “rock with wings” or “winged rock”.
Images of the Month – September 2022 View in your browser Gina Santi Photography Images of the Month – September 2022 In English En Español Opening Reception! In the second half of the 19th century, the term geographic…
What is it about ice hockey that draws so much passion, commitment, and obsession? In cultural anthropology we could use the concepts of group culture, identity, and belonging to better understand the complexities of this sport: ice hockey involves social interaction and social processes, just as any other sport. However, ice hockey is much more than that: it is playing a game -on a sheet of ice! – that is regulated by players with specific physical specialized skills, mental training, and emotional readiness that must be learned and constantly cultivated in order to perform as competent team members.
Music can transform thinking and arouse innovation. It can bring people together, heal relationships, spike enthusiasm, and encourage originality. Music can do all these things on a personal level, but it can also do them on a larger scale: it can assist and be a part in the transformation and revitalization process of entire communities.
Such is the case of the town of Winslow, in the state of Arizona, United States, with a population of about 10,000 people according to the 2010 census. This town became ruthlessly impacted in 1979 when construction of Interstate 40 cut it off, making unnecessary the use of U.S. Route 66 -and Winslow’s downtown- to travel East or West. Homes and establishments were deserted, and Winslow became a city lacking opportunities and safety for those who stayed behind.
Antonio García was quietly fishing in Tijuana, Mexico, near the part of the wall in the United States-Mexico border that extends into the Pacific Ocean. He was deported to Mexico years ago after having lived in the United States for decades without permission, leaving behind children, spouse, siblings, and grandchildren. Today he made his way to the fence to see his wife and two children who are meeting him on the San Diego side of the rust-colored steel boundary marker.
Alfonso Ortiz Tirado was an opera singer and medical doctor born in Alamos, Sonora, Mexico in 1893. His obvious musical talent surfaced early in his life but nevertheless he decided to study medicine. It is in this capacity as a doctor that he is remembered by his many charitable contributions to the Mexican people, especially children. He also had a successful international career as an opera singer, earning the designation of “Tenor of the Americas”.
After a one-year hiatus required by Covid 19, the 37th Annual Music Festival Alfonso Ortiz Tirado happened this year in his birthplace of Alamos to pay homage to its illustrious son. The festival sponsored renowned local, national, and international musicians in numerous styles such as opera, classical music, popular music, and rhythm and blues, and also presented an important way for emerging performers to develop networks and foster their reputation.
LAST CALL!!!
Our studio will be closed from December 15, 2021 to January 15, 2022. This is the last call for calendar orders if you want them delivered in time for Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukah, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, Winter Solstice, Human Solidarity Day, and/or whatever day you celebrate/commemorate. For more details click on the image to your right!
hroughout the centuries, the cultural deterioration of indigenous groups has been extensive; their knowledge has gradually been hidden under the unifying veil of the dominant cultures. It is also unquestionable that modernization has strongly influenced traditions since it is essential to increase production and reduce costs. However, as contexts and circumstances change, people’s actions and knowledge also change without necessarily implying a total breakdown of the cultural system that gives them strength.
The state of Baja California Sur in Mexico has a territory of almost 74,000 square kilometers, with 2,220 kilometers of beaches divided between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California. It enjoys pollutant-free waters which translates into higher quality and better flavor of its fish products. About 3% of the total population of the state is dedicated to fishing, with a fleet of almost 4,000 small boats and approximately 9,700 fishermen using practically the same fishing gear and techniques that were used 70 years ago.
Despite their important contribution to the economy, Mexican artisan fishermen constitute one of the most vulnerable segments of the population. The precariousness of their living conditions is manifested in their huts made of palm, cardboard sheets or planks, and with a dirt floor; and their villages generally lack the most basic public services such as drinking water, electricity, and sewerage. Their work is especially risky due to the conditions in which they do it since they sail in fragile boats with outboard motors and without navigation instruments. In addition, despite the fact that the fishermen’s trade is learned in the water, some of them cannot swim and do not use life-saving equipment.
GSP is pleased to announce her internationally acclaimed artisan calendars for 2022. The theme for this year is the Maya people of the Yucatan Peninsula in honor of the many wonderful human beings I met there, and in honor of this awesome Mexican state who taught me -and continues to teach me- so much! These high-class calendars are ideal for your home and for your office. The images captured by yours truly will immediately transport you to the mystifying land of the ancient Maya, its beautiful people, its culture and realities, and its epic landscapes.
As I drive through the open expansions and vast wilderness of quiet and bare Arizona State Route 92 between Bisbee and Sierra Vista, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road comes to mind. Published for the first time in 1957, On the Road is the classic novel about the Beat Generation of the 1950’s that hands over an extended peek into the lives of a group of cheerful misfits and their ill-fated encounters with women, liquor, drugs, destitution, and music as they hitchhike and weave their way in and out of Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and many other major cities through the heart of the United States and Mexico.
During a recent photographic journey to the state of Yucatan, Mexico I noticed with amazement that, amidst the current COVID pandemic, everybody -vendors and customers in stores and markets, tourists exploring the sites, employees in government organizations, and even priests in churches- was wearing face coverings, even in the blazing hot mid-day sun; likewise, the community at large implemented measures to protect its members from being infected with the nasty virus while life went on somewhat as usual. No discussions, no arguments (political or otherwise), no reluctancy.
This was in sharp contrast with the general attitude of community members in my country of residence, the United States, and as a cultural anthropologist wondered about the reason behind these two very dissimilar ways of behaving. Two equally dissimilar cultural concepts came to mind: individualism and collectivism.
The Easter celebrations in in Antigua Guatemala are a clear example of the important role that celebrations play in the community. They draw attention and reverence from all levels of society. Hundreds of residents volunteer to carry huge wooden floats through the city streets, the church goes to great lengths decorating and preparing for the tribute to the life and death of Jesus, and families go through a truly mesmerizing collaborative process of designing elaborate carpets of vibrant colors made of dyed sawdust, intricately arranged on the streets, to cover the path of the processions.
Yerberías (yer-beh-ree-ahs), also commonly known as botanicas, are usually small, somewhat hidden establishments that provide a wide variety of carefully wrapped medicinal herbs and teas, lotions, potions, amulets for good luck, spell-casting candles of all colors, crystals, fetishes, and a wide-ranging assortment of sacred and pagan articles for the practice of curanderismo, white magic, spiritualism, and Afro-Cuban Santería. They may offer additional services such as consultations, card readings, and “cleansings” to banish negative spirits. They are a vivacious combination of a spiritual resource hub, folk dispensary, and metaphysical outlet, servicing the physical, psychological, religious, and spiritual needs of the Latino population.
Religion is a difficult concept to define when we try to be inclusive of all human societies. We can say that religion is observable and measurable, that it is a cultural expression, and that it plays a definite role in society. As cultural anthropologists we can only attempt to describe and understand what people believe and do in regard to the sacred and supernatural, not judging whether those beliefs and actions are based in an objective truth or not.Take Arthur, for example, an 83-years old resident of Bisbee, Arizona. He has lived frugally in solitary in the hills of that town for 30 years and has spent his life building, with his own hands and using only indigenous materials, shrines to worship a wide variety of beings: Martin Luther King, Che Guevara, the Virgin of Guadalupe, Buddha, Quan-Yi, departed relatives and friends… The shrines have become increasingly popular, with dozens of people visiting them every day to pray, meditate, take pictures of what Arthur labels his ashram, or to simply be.
Research shows that mentally invigorating activities heighten brain power and help preserve our brains sharp as we age, forging new neural pathways in the process. Facing another birthday and having been cordoned off for the past 10 months, I decided to take a solo road trip to Bisbee, an old mining town of 6,000 or so inhabitants located in southeastern Arizona, United States. I was very pleased to find a welcoming town, somewhat surreal, filled with historic architecture and creative and culturally rich people. With the same purpose I decided to challenge myself with a different approach to my traditional cultural anthropology photography, this time using different subjects and filters to better capture the feeling of the town as I strolled through its winding, narrow streets and alleys.
During a recent trip to the central region of Colombia I ran into a very complete, well organized jewel of a museum: the Archeological Museum of Zipaquirá (MAZ). The building encompasses three large rooms permanently exhibiting more than 3500 original archaeological pieces representing nineteen pre-Hispanic cultures that had settlements in different parts of Colombia before the Colonization.
During these past few COVID-19 pandemic months I have desperately missed the human side of being a photographer. I miss the huge privilege of having unique insights into the worlds of so many different people. Being quarantined with limited options on travel and work means having to search for new forms of stimulation and creative outlets, in order to spark the fire of my creative and personal energies.
Fortunately, photography in itself is also a therapeutic art form, one that provides many creative outlets in order to stay positive: embracing new skills, sharing experiences and knowledge with a strong and supportive virtual community, or going through boxes of old negatives and slides in order to complete that digitalizing project that has been on the back burner for so long.
La Casa della Fontana Piccola, (the House of the Small Fountain) is perhaps the most refined and elegant mansion of Pompeii. It is a typical dwelling of the local ruling class, a small atrium house located in a privileged spot along Via di Mercurio. The house owes its name to a beautiful fountain decorated with shells, colorful mosaics, and bronze statuettes, located at the very back of the central garden.
Graduation is one of the most important moments in a student’s life: it marks the transition from one stage in their educational life to another. It is a moment of pride for a student as well as for family members, who watch with a sense of satisfaction as a diploma is handed to their child.
From the perspective of cultural anthropology, graduation rituals transmit many emblematic messages: the importance of effort, hard work, perseverance, and social conscience, for example. They are also important agents of cultural diffusion through the communication of expectations and patterns of behavior and performance.
Click here for the entire e-newsletter Gina Santi Photography Images of the Month – April 2020 In English En Español In Other News This Image of the Month was captured at the…
Gina Santi Photography Images of the Month – October 2019 En Español In English 2020 Calendars The village of Tzintzuntzan in the state of Michoacan, Mexico, is famous for its celebration of the Dia de Los Muertos. In this…
Click here for the entire e-newsletter WHISKEY ROW, PRESCOTT, ARIZONA, UNITED STATES YESTERDAY AND TODAY Monctezuma Street, the main street in Prescott, Arizona, United States, founded in 1864, became the town’s center of recreation during the early days of…
Click here for the entire e-newsletter Images of the Month – June 2019 View this email in your browser GINA SANTI PHOTOGRAPHY Fine Ethnographic Images Images of the Month June 2019 English Español …
Click here for the entire e-newsletter In English En Español In Other News Contact Us GINA SANTI PHOTOGRAPHY Images of the Month – April 2019 Gina Santi Photography had the privilege of…
Gina Santi Photography Fine Ethnographic Images Images of the Month – October 2018 En Español In English 2019 Calendars Valuable Coupon Tucked among the verdant hills of Colombia’s Coffee Triangle or Eje Cafeteroregion, Salento is a colorful, peaceful town with multihued buildings…
Click here for the entire e-newsletter Gina Santi Photography Images of the Month – December 2017 “El Buen Frank” is a famous piñata maker in Calle Ricardo Yáñez, in the city of Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico. He builds…
Every Monday of the year, and after a long process of manufacturing, ranchers from the area around the village of San Rafael de Atamaica, Apure State, Venezuela, ride their canoes on the Arauca river into town to sell their highly…
The Navajos (in Navajo language, Diné or Naabeehó), the second largest federally recognized tribe in the United States with 300,460 enrolled tribal members as of 2015, are Native American peoples that moved into the country’s southwestern area from the Subarctic about…
The International Monetary Fund has projected that inflation in Venezuela will hit 720% in 2017, which may be a buoyant evaluation according to some experts. A big part of the…
