In Benin, the Egungun festival is one of the most striking expressions of Yoruba culture, a ceremony where memory, artistry, and spirituality move together in vivid, commanding form. In his new photographic series, Stephan Gladieu captures this world with an extraordinary sense of presence, offering a window into a tradition where ancestors return not as metaphor but as embodied force.
Among the Yoruba, death is understood as transformation rather than disappearance. The spirit continues its journey, and during the Egungun festival, it reenters the human realm through a performer concealed in elaborate layers of cloth, embroidery, shells, sequins, bones, and carved wood. These garments are not decorative—they are built as vessels capable of carrying ancestral presence. When an Egungun appears, it is not simply a dancer in costume but a spirit returning to guide, bless, and protect the community.
The festival itself is a living expression of heritage. Male secret societies oversee the invocation and care of these ancestral figures, maintaining a lineage of ritual knowledge passed down through generations. As Egungun figures move through the community, they honor the dead, affirm the living, and strengthen the bond between both worlds. What unfolds is a reminder that cultural identity is sustained through practice, not nostalgia.
Gladieu’s photographs distill this power with striking clarity. Each portrait reveals the precision of the craftsmanship—the geometry of layered fabrics, the density of adornment, the expressive tension between concealment and presence. Through his lens, the Egungun figures appear both sculptural and animate, carrying a weight of history that resists simplification. The images allow viewers to encounter the festival as it is experienced: as an encounter with lineage.
The Egungun tradition serves as a bridge between the living and the ancestral realm, keeping open a channel of guidance and remembrance. These rituals are as much about celebrating life and community as they are about honoring those who came before. In documenting them, Gladieu captures not only a ceremony but a philosophy—one that insists the past is never truly past.
His series is now on view at Galerie Olivier Castaing in Paris, inviting global audiences to witness the depth, artistry, and resilience of this Yoruba practice.
Stephan Gladieu’s new series is a testament to the power of photography to capture the soul of cultural practices. The Egungun festival, with its dazzling costumes and profound spiritual significance, is a vibrant expression of Yoruba heritage. Gladieu’s photographs offer a captivating glimpse into this world, celebrating the resilience and richness of African cultural traditions, and are currently being showcased at the Galerie Olivier Castaing in Paris, France.
