Sebastiao Salgado (Brazilian, b. 1944) Cast of Thousands, Serra Pelada, in the Gold Mine of Pará, Brazil, 1986 Gelatin silver print, printed later 13-3/8 x 20-3/8 inches (34.0 x 51.8 cm) (image) 20 x 24 inches (sheet) Embossed with photographer's blindstamp, lower margin recto. Signed, titled, and dated in pencil, verso. LITERATURE: E. Galeano and F. Ritchin, Sebastãio Salgado: An Uncertain Grace, Aperture, NY, 1990, p. 17. "The Miners of Serra Pelada: bodies of clay. More than fifty thousand men in Northern Brazil, buried in clay, hunting for gold. Loaded with clay they scale the mountain, slipping sometimes and falling. each fallen life no more important than a pebble that falls. A host of miners climbing, Images of the pyramid builders in the days of the Pharaohs? An army of ants? Ants, lizards? The miners have lizard skin and lizard eyes. Do the wretched of the world live in the world's zoo? Salgado's camera reaches in to reveal the light of human life with tragic intensity, with sad tenderness." (Eduardo Galeano, Sebastão Salgado: An Uncertain Grace) HID12401132022 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved