Photo exhibition
The Eyes of Xingu
The Eyes of Xingu presents 20 photos taken by young Indigenous and forest peoples from Xingu in Brazil. Through the images, these forest communicators present an artistic view of their world.
LEADER: Ngrenhkàmôrô Kayapó, female Indigenous leader from Xingu. Photo: Yamony Muriki Yawalapiti Kuikuro
See all the photos and get the personal stories behind the images from the photographers themselves
The Eyes of Xingu
How are the eyes of forest communicators able to translate the way of life of the peoples of Xingu?
As the title suggests, this exhibition is an invitation into the Xingu+ communicators' visual interpretations of their way of life, the problems they face and how they organize themselves to meet threats to their rights. The images show the concerns and the joys arising from the communicators' relationship with their communities.
The gaze of the Xingu+ communicators goes beyond what the society around them can see. Their prespective is broader and emphasises the relationship between good living and the protection of their land.
The exhibition also presents a reflection on how these visual interpretations can encourage new generations of forest communicators to photograph based on Xinguan thinking.
The Eyes of Xingu was curated by Kujaesãge Kaiabi and the Xingu+ communicators.
The Xingu+ Communicators gathered in São Paulo, Brazil in April 2024. Photo: ISA
The Xingu+ Communicators
The Xingu+ Communicators is a network of young adults from Indigenous and traditional forest communities in Xingu. They use media and media technologies to monitor and combat deforestation and threats to their rights and lands. Information and media is shared amongst the members of the network to strengthen cooperation between the different peoples of Xingu.
The communicators are part of the Xingu+ Network, an alliance of Indigenous and traditional forest communities’ organizations and external allies dedicated to preserving nature and human rights in Xingu.
The Eyes of Xingu brings together photographs by eight communicators from the following Indigenous Territories: Kayapó, Wawi, Menkragnoti, Xingu, Paquiçamba and Cachoeira Seca.
XINGU: The Indigenous Yudjá village of Tuba Tuba on the Xingu River in Brazil. Photo: Guaíra Maia / ISA
About Xingu
The Xingu Corridor is a large, protected region in the Brazilian states of Pará and Mato Grosso. The corridor is home to hundreds of families from traditional forest communities and 26 Indigenous peoples.
It began with the creation of a vast Indigenous territory in 1961. Since then, several Indigenous and forest peoples in the Xingu have had their land rights recognized, and conservation units to protect regional biodiversity have been added. The demarcation of these territories occurred due to the threat of land grabs from outsiders, illegal exploitation of natural resources and in the context of disputes over land.
Today, the Xingu Corridor is almost the size of Italy (280.000 km2) and includes 21 Indigenous Territories and nine other protected conservation units. It remains an island of forests and rivers in an area increasingly threatened by deforestation and pollution from the cattle and soy industries.
The Xingu+ Communicators featured in the exhibition are from these Indigenous Territories:
