Cristina de Middel

All copies are signed and numbered by the artist*** In the work Muchismo, the photographer Cristina de Middel digs around in her studios and brings all of her images to light, exactly the way she has them stored, in colossal, gorgeous chaos. This is a sui generis display of her entire oeuvre, with neither a curator nor any apparent order, which seeks to question the art market and its rules. At the same time, this book shows a series made up of pictures taken in New Zealand in which the artist strives to bring depth back to landscape photography by using mirrors and her own devices. Both works are captured in this publication, a book that had become an object of desire even before it materialised, as always happens with the works of one of the most fascinating photographers on today's scene. Spanish and English text .120 images… (mais)

Sharkification is about the “favelas” and the Brazilian government’s strategy to attempt to control them during the soccer World Cup by involving armed units. It created a militarisation of the communities, where suddenly everybody becomes a suspect. The shark metaphor aims to explain the dynamics into place. “I used the comparison with a submarine world to imagine that the favelas are a coral reef where there are predators…” When most of the photojournalists keep trying to play with feelings, Cristina de Middel uses humour, which seems to be a more intelligent way to look at things and that helps people becoming more curious.… (mais)

Spanish-born, London-based photographer and conceptual artist Cristina de Middel (born 1975) follows the colossal success of her 2012 volume The Afronauts--a self-publishing phenomenon that was voted best photo book of that year by Photo-eye--with Party, a portrait of present-day China modeled on Mao Tsetong’s Red Book. De Middel uses the structure of Mao’s book (as well as its iconic design) to create a photo-narrative interspersed with adapted quotations from Mao. As she describes it: "I decided to adapt this historic political statement … by censoring and hiding the parts of the text that are no longer in force and highlighting some other redesigned sentences that, for me, form a more accurate portrait of the People’s Republic of China in the twenty-first century." Party is published in a limited edition of 750 copies and is certain to quickly become a photo-book classic.… (mais)

Esù is one of the most enigmatic entities in the cosmogony of West African religions and he crossed the Ocean hand in hand with the the slaves to land in a new world where forced labour, lack of freedom and missionaries would force a transformation that lasts until today in the global understanding of African rooted religions. Midnight at the Crossroads documents and records these transformations and adaptations from its origin in Benin to Cuba, Brazil and then Haiti. Esù starts as a totem in Benin, becomes a child in Cuba, then a young seductive man in Brazil and finally an old man in Haiti, but it is always a confusing spirit that questions your certainties and makes you doubt along the way.

Esù is the energy for change and mutation. It is hard to define whether his influences are good or evil, but to say the least they are challenging. He is the one in charge of the communication with the other Orishas, he is in charge of the crossroads and he is the one placing obstacles on your way for you to redeem the control on your own life.

In order to bring some light to the obscure narrative that predominates in popular culture and that directly links African rooted religions like Umbanda, Santeria or Voodoo, to devilish energies, this project combines a documentary approach to rituals and ceremonies with visions around the myths and legends that are illustrated to provide a wider and non-linear understanding.

Cristina De Middel and Bruno Morais have spent 3 years following the path of Esù and building a document that comes as a reaction to the advance of Evangelical churches accross Africa and South America that is challenging the survival of an endangered cultural heritage that adds some substantial input to the very much needed non-official version of History.… (mais)