Art photography
Silent Book
€224.00
A visceral, symbolic portrait of the Latin world by acclaimed Brazilian photographer Miguel Rio Branco.
Moving away from traditional documentary photography, Silent Book constructs a shadowy, Baroque narrative woven from cheap boxing gyms, brothels, ruined spaces, and sacred rituals. Through intense color, stark shadows, and a focus on the body as a border between pain and devotion, Rio Branco creates a haunting meditation on flesh, decay, time, and the deep-seated spiritual histories of Latin culture.
Skin is a dialogue between outside and inside, a separation that is also a connection." — Miguel Rio Branco
In Silent Book, Brazilian photographer and filmmaker Miguel Rio Branco deconstructs classic documentary imagery to build a complex, richly symbolic visual universe. Departing from conventional storytelling, the work operates as a visceral sequence of metaphors exploring the fundamentals of human existence: time, flesh, sexuality, decay, and martyrdom.
Rooted in the visual language of the Christian Latin world, Rio Branco juxtaposes scenes gathered across Brazil, Cuba, and Spain. He treats locations like Rio de Janeiro’s Santa Rosa Boxing Club not merely as sports arenas, but as modern, ritualistic sanctuaries where body and soul collide. Framed by rich, shadowy tones reminiscent of Baroque art, his compositions capture bruised flesh, worn boxing gloves, brothels, poor circuses, and sacral imagery.
Celebrated by photobook historians Martin Parr and Gerry Badger as a work of "full-blooded Roman Catholic art," Silent Book speaks to both the central sacraments of faith and the complex, often violent histories of Latin America. It is a masterpiece of atmospheric tension—an immersive reflection on the physical world, where skin, light, and memory converge.
Bibliographic Details
| Author | Miguel da Silva Paranhos do Rio Branco |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Cosac & Naify |
| Place of publication | São Paulo |
| Year | 1997 |
| Edition | First edition |
| Binding | Hardcover |
| ISBN | 9788586374210 |
| Collation | 98 pp. |
| Dimensions | 19.4 x 19.7 cm |
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