Photographer Christian Kieffer is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. From the project ‘Natives – Bolivar’s Gran Colombia’. To see Christian’s body of work, click on any photograph.
Embera, Nabuga, Colombia and Panama
The Emberá are an Indigenous people of Panama and Colombia. There are approximately 33,000 people living in Panama and 50,000 in Colombia. Thousands of Embera have been displaces in Colombia and Panama over the past decades.
These photos I shot back in 2018 during my visit in Nabuga, a small settlement only reachable by boat located in the department of the Chocó.
Chocó Department is a department of the Pacific region of Colombia known for hosting the largest Afro-Colombian population in the nation. It is in the west of the country and is the only Colombian department to have coastlines on both the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. It contains all of Colombia’s border with Panama.
Kogi, Mulkupkungui, Colombia
Mulkupkungui is a remote Kogi settlement that can only be accessed on foot. I visited this location in the Sierra Nevada in 2018, following my earlier journey to the lost city (Ciudad Perdida), a sacred site in the mountains that requires a multi-day trek to reach.
Indigenous cultures in present and pre-Columbian South America use a Poporo to store small amounts of lime produced from burnt and crushed seashells. A pin is used to carry the lime to the mouth while a person chews coca leaves, and it’s made up of two pieces: the container and the lid. Poporos are believed to have mystical powers and social status since the chewing of coca is sacred for the indigenous people.
Tikuna, Amazonas, Colombia and Brazil
The Ticuna indigenous community resides in the Amazon region, spanning Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. I have visited this area on two occasions. Approximately 50,000 Ticunas inhabit the Three Borders region. The primary town can be easily accessed by air, with flights from Bogotá to Leticia, the capital of the Colombian Amazon Department. On the Colombian side, it is one of the few locations with some roads; all other areas are accessible solely by boat.
Currently, the majority of the Ticuna population wears Western-style clothing, reserving their traditional attire made from tree bark for special events or tourist demonstrations. Most Ticuna individuals today are proficient in either Portuguese or Spanish, depending on their country of residence, and they predominantly use names from these languages.
Photos shot in 2022 and 2024 in Puerto los Lagos, a small Ticuna settlement near Leticia.
In the past 25 years I have travelled numerous times to Latin America. Many of these visits were to Colombia and Panama, reason to focus on some of so many indigenous communities living in this area I had the chance to visit. While choosing black and white photography. I aim to highlight the fundamental aspects of my subjects.
While my primary focus is portrait photography, in this instance, I would like to showcase a series of environmental portraits that I have captured throughout the years.
The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is a mountain range located close to the Caribbean Sea in northern Colombia. It is recognized as the tallest coastal range in tropical regions and ranks among the highest globally, reaching an elevation of 5,700 meters just 42 kilometers from the Caribbean coastline. This area is inhabited by four indigenous groups: Wiwa, Arhuaco, Kankuamo, and Kogi.
The Tairona culture, which thrived prior to the Spanish conquest, is the ancestor of these indigenous groups. The Tairona were an advanced civilization which built many stone structures and pathways in the jungles.
With 8 visits in Colombia, I have been 3 times traveling into the Sierra and some remote places visiting some of the indigenous populations.
Katanzama is a relatively new village situated close to the Caribbean Sea in northern Colombia, within the Magdalena department, near Palomino. I visited this settlement in March 2023.
I was allowed to take some photos in the community central washing place.
Wayuu, Guajira, Colombia
I have visited La Guajira twice. This department encompasses a significant portion of the Guajira Peninsula, located in the northeastern part of Colombia along the Caribbean Sea, and it shares a border with Venezuela at the northernmost point of South America. The capital of this department is Riohacha. Due to security concerns during my most recent visit in 2024, my movements were restricted to the vicinity of Riohacha, where I captured two photographs featuring children from the Wayúu community.
The Wayúu are an Indigenous ethnic group native to this area in northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela. Their language belongs to the Arawakan language family. Throughout their history, the Wayúu have faced resistance from the Spanish, local landowners, and the Catholic Church. Despite these challenges, their traditions endure, and their artisan crafts represent one of the largest handicraft exports in contemporary Colombia. This region is among the poorest in the country.
Yagua, Amazonas, Colombia
Photo shot in 2024 in a small settlement called Comunidad indígena Patruliero, near the town of Puerto Nariño. Elderly woman from the tribe Yagua.
Currently the Yagua live in some 30 communities scattered throughout a section of the Peruvian and Colombian Amazon basin. This woman only spoke her native language, so communicating with her in Spanish was not possible.
Ngabe, Soloy, Panama
The Ngäbe-Buglé comarca is distinguished by its mountainous landscape, featuring steep inclines and predominantly nutrient-deficient soil with a significant presence of rock. The Caribbean slope experiences no dry season, resulting in a landscape dominated by tropical forests, while the Pacific slope has a windy dry season followed by a wet season.
The Ngäbe are an indigenous people within these territories Panama and Costa Rica.
There are approximately 200,000-250,000 speakers of the Ngäbere language.
Photo shot in 2023 around the settlement of Soloy.
Christian Kieffer is a self-taught artistic and portrait photographer from Luxembourg. His artistic journey has been significantly influenced by extensive travels throughout the vibrant landscapes of Latin America since the late 1990s, which have enriched and refined his unique photographic style. Kieffer has a particular affinity for the powerful medium of black-and-white photography, which he adeptly employs to capture the essence and dignity of Indigenous communities. His evocative street photography presents raw and compelling scenes that resonate profoundly, inviting viewers to engage directly with the subjects he thoughtfully depicts. Portraying individuals is a profound passion; it is about narrating the stories of unknown people. The use of black-and-white imagery enhances the emotional depth of these narratives, making the experience all the more meaningful.
All images and text © Christian Kieffer
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By Christian Kieffer
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Thank you!
Thank you. This is an amazing collection and the narrative is amazing. I took the link to the ‘Indigenas’ collection and I would recommend to anyone who was moved by this piece to definitely look at the full gallery.