article_snippet.sent: Taking along Photographer Andres Figueroa mobile lighting studio, Photographer Andres Figueroa photographed a series of religious festivals that take place every July in the Atacama.
article_snippet.sent: In Photographer Andres Figueroa "Dancers of the Deserts" series, Photographer Andres Figueroa chronicles these festivals, which attract about 200,000 people to some otherwise quiet mining towns in Chile.
article_snippet.sent: It is a very special festival.
article_snippet.sent: Figueroa, who befriended many of the musicians and dancers, said it was important to take part in a very special festival in order to understand it meaning to the community.
article_snippet.sent: Photographer Andres Figueroa said the desert festivals have a deeper role in a region that struggles with social problems such as drug trafficking and poverty.
article_snippet.sent: the desert festivals "are a form of social protection," Photographer Andres Figueroa said.