The Other Beaches of Brazil

While wealthier sunbathers may opt for Ipanema and Copacabana, there exists another coastline checkered with picnics of roasted chicken and “farofa.” Farofa, a typical Brazilian food made from toasted manioc flour and mixed with bacon, onion, parsley, eggs, bananas or vegetables, was the inspiration for this project by photographer João Castellano. “Middle and upper class Brazilians frequently use a pejorative  term to refer to the lower income beachgoers: “farofeiros,’” Castellano explained. He spent four years traveling to farofeiro beaches, exploring the colorful culture of a community that is often looked down upon. Often unable to travel to the famous beaches of their country, farofeiros cool off near favelas, public pools, and the beaches of dams. “The main idea of this project is to take us, viewers, to a place we don’t want to go,” he said, “to show us a reality we don’t want to see, and then make us start questioning our own prejudice.”

Read more
Hints: View this page full screen. Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k or ←/→.

Most Recent

  • Mahmut Serdar Alakus / Anadolu Agency / Getty
    • In Focus
    • August 2, 2021
    • 28 Photos

    Photos: Deadly Wildfires Along Turkey’s Coast

    High winds and scorching temperatures have driven the fires, forcing residents and tourists to evacuate by land or by sea.

  • Lindsey Wasson / Reuters
    • In Focus
    • July 30, 2021
    • 35 Photos

    Photos of the Week: Wooden Troll, Violin Boat, River Mary

    Scenes from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, wildfires in Turkey and Russia, a spacecraft in Earth’s orbit, migrants crossing the Mediterranean, flooding in China, and much more

  • David Swanson / Reuters
    • In Focus
    • July 28, 2021
    • 28 Photos

    Photos of California’s Dixie Fire

    Scenes from the Golden State’s largest wildfire of 2021 so far

  • Lucy Nicholson / Reuters
    • In Focus
    • July 26, 2021
    • 35 Photos

    Tokyo 2020: Images From the First Weekend of the Olympics

    Scenes from the first few days of Olympic competition in Japan

Most Popular on The Atlantic

  1. Unvaccinated People Need to Bear the Burden
  2. American Shoppers Are a Nightmare
  3. How the Bobos Broke America
  4. Watch the U.K. to Understand Delta
  5. Dwayne Johnson Misunderstands His Own Star Appeal
  6. The Anti-vaccine Con Job Is Becoming Untenable
  7. What the Ohio Special Election Actually Means
  8. The California Dream Is Dying
  9. The Gymnast Who Won’t Let Her Daughters Do Gymnastics
  10. The mRNA Vaccines Are Extraordinary, but Novavax Is Even Better
Back to Top