Research and collaboration with anthropologist Mattijs van de Port, 2014-2015 Salvador da Bahia, Brazil

The starting point for our research is the ritual fechar o corpo (closing the body) which recognizes the porosity of the body and simultaneously attempts to guard the body against the invasion of evil forces and unwanted spirits. This specific ritual and its implied notions of the porous body form the backbone of this research, and they are also the starting point for a much broader exploration of an environment that accepts the permeability of borders and expresses it in its material culture, social manners and religious practices.

Our collaboration expresses a striving to eliminate the boundaries between cultural anthropology and (visual)art, to learn from each other's perspectives, different methodical approaches and expertise. Van de Port has been doing investigation into Candomblé since 2001, and has published extensively on this subject; I have been exploring Candomblé since 2006, and this resulted in the film May I Enter?²