THE PATUM OF BERGA. THE PLEASANT HELL

COOPERATIVE PHOTOGRAPHIC PROJECT WITH MARC SIXTO.

The Patum de Berga, or simply La Patum, is a popular and traditional festival that is celebrated each year in the Catalan city of Berga during Corpus Christi. It consists of a series of “dances” (balls) by townspeople dressed as mystical and symbolical figures. The balls are marked by their solemnity and their ample use of fire and pyrotechnics.   The strongest emotions come with the highlight: Salt de Plens. Exactly one hundred people dance around dressed with fresh grass (to protect themselves from the fire) in thick mask helmets on top of which a strong fire is burning. There are almost 1.000 burning whips at the same time. The name “plens” stems from the fact that they are indeed full of fire and they represent the infernal orgy.

We went there and we set up a small photo studio to immortalize emotions felt by the plens after participating in the infernal orgy.

Here you can see a sample of the project outcome.

         Plens de Patum, per Simon Perayre