FOTOCLUBISMO

Brazilian Modernist Photography, 1946–1964 @ MoMA

image above: Julio Agostinelli. Circus (Circense). 1951. Gelatin silver print, 11 7/16 × 15 in. (29 × 38.1 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Acquired through the generosity of Richard O. Rieger. © 2020 Estate of Julio Agostinelli; cover image: Thomaz Farkas. Ministry of Education (Ministério da Educação) [Rio de Janeiro]. c. 1945. Gelatin silver print, 12 13/16 × 11 3/4 in. (32.6 × 29.9 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Gift of the artist

BY: Ramona Duoba

The Foto Cine Clube Bandeirante, a small photography club founded in 1939, gave birth to modernist photography in Brazil. It is one of the oldest photographic associations and is considered the artistic cradle of many well-known photographers from this South American nation. The Museum of Modern Art in NYC will showcase its work in the upcoming exhibition FOTOCLUBISMO: BRAZILIAN MODERNIST PHOTOGRAPHY, 1946–1964. While this group of amateur photographers was heralded in Brazil, it has been essentially unknown to the European and North American audience.

The vast majority of FCCB members pursued photography outside of their day jobs as lawyers, business people, accountants, journalists, engineers, biologists, and bankers. Still, FCCB members were serious about their artistic ambition. Works such as Geraldo de Barros’s Fotoforma, São Paulo (1952–53), Thomaz Farkas’s Ministry of Education and Health, Rio (c. 1945), or Gertrudes Altschul’s Filigree (Filigrana) (c. 1952) represent some of their radical experimentations with process and form and their imaginative viewpoint of everyday life.

The members were influenced by the originality of contemporary Brazilian architects and their approach to abstraction as a creative strategy. During the post-war era and the rapid industrialization of São Paulo, the members became known for a modernist style.

Beyond creating photographs, a critical aspect of the club was its monthly Concursos Internos (internal contests) and Seminarios. Photographs were submitted for peer review and discussed in public and private forums. Like most amateur photo clubs worldwide, the FCCB fostered a supportive environment and embraced a wide range of artistic approaches. Yet, it was also competitive, where critical judgment and artistic ambition were central to the club’s identity.

MoMA’s curators say this exhibition provides insight into how photographic aesthetics were framed in the 1950s and affords opportunities to reflect on the significance of amateur status today.

FOTOCLUBISMO: BRAZILIAN MODERNIST PHOTOGRAPHY, 1946–1964, will be on view at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC May 8-September 26, 2021.