Photographer Juliette Coste is an Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. From the project ‘Morros do Rio’. To see Juliette ‘s body of work, click on any photograph.

“Morros”

A cœur ouvert

This project brings together photographs taken in four favelas of Rio de Janeiro in 2011: Morro Dona Marta, Morro do Cantagalo, Morro da Babilônia and Morro da Penha.

In Portuguese, morro means “hill.” In Rio de Janeiro, the city’s informal settlements, known as favelas, grew on the steep hillsides overlooking the city. By 2010, around 22% of Rio’s population, approximately 1,4 million people, lived in one of nearly 900 favelas.

Built outside official urban planning, many favelas have long faced poverty, limited infrastructure and the presence of organized crime. In 2010 and 2011, ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games, the Brazilian government launched a large-scale “pacification” campaign, deploying special police units to regain control of several communities.

Favelas are often reduced to images of violence and deprivation. Yet those who endure this reality every day are not outsiders but the millions of people who live there. They have families, jobs, dreams and ordinary lives. They are Cariocas, the people of Rio de Janeiro.

I wanted to spend time in these neighborhoods, to experience their atmosphere, meet their residents, and portray both the places and the people who inhabit them. My intention was neither to romanticize poverty nor to sensationalize it, but to photograph it with honesty and respect.

These portraits reveal men, women and children whose openness, dignity and vitality challenge the stereotypes so often associated with the favelas. They remind us that behind every statistic is a human being, and that the people who live in these communities are, above all, Cariocas, deserving to be seen not for where they live, but for who they are.

Based in Paris, Juliette Coste divides her practice between commissioned photography and personal artistic projects.

After beginning her career at a photographers' agency in Paris, she spent twelve years living between Dallas, Rio de Janeiro and Istanbul. In the United States, she worked as a photo stylist before studying photography at the Escola de Artes Visuais (School of Visual Arts) in Rio de Janeiro, where she specialized in fashion photography.

This international journey has shaped a visual language deeply influenced by different cultures, human encounters and a thoughtful observation of the world.

While her professional work involves creating images for brands, her personal projects lead her toward a more intimate, human-centered photography, driven by meaningful encounters and a desire to bear witness to what moves her.

Whether working on a commissioned assignment or a personal project, Juliette Coste strives to create images that tell a story. Guided by a pursuit of balanced composition, she seeks to reveal, with sensitivity, the beauty and strength of the human spirit.