José Medeiros was a documentary photographer born in 1921 in Teresina (Nordeste). At the age of 12, his father taught him photography techniques and at the age of 18, he moved to Rio to study architecture but ended up following his passion and began working with reviews, taking photos of celebrities.
After the war, the French photographer Jean Manzon invited him to join the new review O Cruzeiro. It was the beginning of a new adventure full of liberty and boldness, in his own words. Cruzeiro incorporated the photojournalism model practiced by European magazines such as Vu and Voilá: a photographic narrative designed and structured primarily as an adventure, frequently relied on the voyeurism and journalistic sensationalism.
At the same time, O Cruzeiro helped Brazil to understand its diversity, even if it also served the interests of Getulio Vargas, his authoritarian regime and the construction of national identity.
Let’s see the peak back into Brazil, its diversity and culture back then.
Serra do Roncador, Mato Grosso
José Medeiros/Acervo Instituto Moreira Salles
