BEHREND, Ute - Bear Girls

Background information

"Somewhere in North America or Canada, there is an Indian tribe that dresses its pubescent girls in large bear skins. They live somewhat apart from the Indian village with other girls of their age and are protected from the gaze of adults and boys by wearing the skins. They are even advised to move in a particularly clumsy manner, just like a bear. In this sheltered atmosphere they can develop undisturbed. They decide for themselves when to shed their fur. From then on they belong to the community of adult Indian girls. In addition, Indian girls of this tribe can also freely decide whether they want to become warriors. Not many do, but there have been from time to time. When I told this to a friend the other day, she thought she remembered hearing about this tribe before. In fact, however, I made up the story." (© Ute BEHREND, 2019)

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About the German photographer, Ute BEHREND

Photo books by Ute BEHREND