J'ouvert is when the early birds catch the worm in Carnival terms and call in the dawn with the cry of a Conch shell. I thought it was the beginning of the day, starting at 6am but now realise that it is a continuation from the overnight celebrations after the steel pan contest "Panorama". Infact the Ebony Steel Pan band lead the procession of paint assassins like the Pied Piper along the route of Portabello Road. This year I was well equipped for the crossfire of gunge and glitter with an industrial strength boilersuit that looked like I was going into a chemical testing zone. Witnessing an army of psychedelically clad pranksters in clouds of white talc is a surreal sight at sunrise. But that's why its one of my favourite parts of the weekend and why I happily lose sleep to absorb as much of the fun as possible. It only comes once a year!
Read more on the tradition in my archive posts here .
I'll sign off now from my reportage of Trinidad Carnival 2017. I'll return to it again with other people's photos. But for now......... I've wrapped up the joy of all the colour and costumes that I encountered. I've missed out a couple of things that I wasn't able to capture on film as I was having too much fun at the time. One was the Soca concert hosted by Destra Garcia which featured guest performances by every soca star on the scene and was a secret line-up that kept bringing out the best and the best. The other main event was the Jouvert carnival which starts at 4a.m til 8a.m to witness the sun rise and this incredible rainbow that appeared for us!
The shot here which sums up the ridiculous amount of time I spent smiling, was from my first time following a truck soundsystem and getting used to the constant "one-two" shuffle step motion. It's a move that I feel I have comfortably conquered now after days on the road, and I'm ready for more............. as soon as possible..............
The next stage to Notting Hill Carnival after the Steel Pan concert on Saturday night is an early start on Sunday morning for the "J'ouvert" opening ceremony which runs from 6-9am. This is the traditional sunrise start of smearing yourself with mud or paint to symbolise the oil used as camouflage from civil disturbances in Trinidad, and in remembrance of the emancipation from slavery. Therefore a "JabJab" Carnival character is full body makeup of slick black tar, horn headwear and chains wrapped around, trailing down. That is the most classic aesthetic but has morphed into any variation of covering yourself in paint and has become a multi-colour explosion of primary and pastel splashes.I love seeing all the girls with their hair carefully protected, tucked up into wraps, nets and scarfs. There is no mercy. Paint, glitter glue, clay and talcum powder all get slapped onto every piece of fresh meat that crosses the path of the procession. It's a legitimate chance to get mercilessly messy and channel your inner Jackson Pollock. The accidental amalgamations of pigment is just another dose of intense colour in the weekend's attack on the senses. Im in heaven. Obviously.
(see my post from last year, some text duplicated)
