Advance Information Sheet
From Jesus to Miracles
The People of Bahia’s Sertão
Photography by ROBERTO DaMATTA
If Brazil’s brain is São Paulo, its face has to be beautiful Rio de Janeiro but its heart is Bahia, a state located right in the heart of the country. Bahia is the craddle of Brazil’s most interesting cultural movement. It has generated the music of Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil and the literature of Jorge Amado. It is in Bahia that one finds “Literatura de Cordel”, popular stories all written in verse.
In the hinterland of Bahia, the small towns of Brazil's "sertão" still have the flavour of the real Brazil, which is disappearing with globalization. The simplicity, sweetness, charm, beauty of Brazil is still written on people's faces in the small towns.
The Sertão of Bahia has been the stage for several conflicts and is plagued by perennial severe drought. This has created a very industrious and sturdy people who are survivors. Claudio Edinger has been photographing this region between the two cities of Bom Jesus and Milagres, creating an amazing and unique body of work, all shot in color with a 4x5 camera.
Brazilian born Claudio Edinger is the author of several award-winning books, including Chelsea Hotel, Venice Beach, Carnaval, Madness and Old Havana. His photographs have appeared in all major magazines around the world. His work has been exhibited at The International Center of Photography (New York), Centre Georges Pompidou (France), Photographer’s Gallery (England), Museu de Arte de São Paulo and Museu da Imagem e do Som (Brazil), among others. He has been awarded The Leica Medal of Excellence twice, The Ernst Haas Award, and The Pictures of The Year Award in 1996 for best photography in a magazine and The Higashikawa Award (Japan) in 1999 for foreign photographer
of the year.
Roberto DaMatta, professor of Anthropology at the university of Notre Dame, Illinois where he lecures on Social anthropology, anthropological theory, ritual and symbols, film, modernization and national identity;
Latin America.