The Other Side of Carnival: Rio de Janeiro, 2015

As usual, as the annual "Carnival" celebration landed in Brazil, images from the celebration were highlighted in medias across the world. The color, the music and the life were essential to injecting some joy to the usual parade of wars, deaths and disasters. Despite the profusion of media attention, many people who gave decisive contributions to the Carnival didn't receive any merit, notice or credit. Many workers who gave themselves 24/7 for the entire month were completely invisible in the representations of the event. Artisans, sculptors, builders, seamstresses, cleaners, street vendors, security guards, parade stewards, musicians, dancers and many other workers take a significant part on the show yet never appear to the outside world. "I have never taken part in the parade itself, but when I watch it on TV, at least I get to see the costumes that I made. In those moments, I feel that, somehow, I'm also there." —Carla Alves, 20 years old, costume and props artisan. "I love to work during the carnival, cause I can get money and have fun at the same time." —Elza, 53 years old, street vendor.