Alex Ferro
Alex Ferro was born in Rio de Janeiro. Between 2012 and 2016 he worked as a photographer for the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and produced a unique image bank. There are approximately 150,000 saved images – edited and retouched – including photographs of sport, the city of Rio de Janeiro and human behaviour.
Ferro began his career in 1989, at the Rio de Janeiro-based newspaper O Povo na Rua. But it was at the magazines Manchete and Ele & Ela (Bloch) that he had the opportunity to associate the coverage of daily material with the creation of themed storylines, as was the case with his exclusive Carnival coverage.
Since 2008 he has made regular trips to Portugal, dividing his time between Rio de Janeiro and Lisbon, which was only interrupted when he joined Rio 2016 in 2012. In the Portuguese capital, Ferro worked on the development of content in the fashion area, including reports and shoots for the Cofina group. Over the years, including activities in Brazil and abroad, he has specialized in extensive coverage and mega projects. He has also gained experience in institutional and commercial works of a corporate nature which were aimed at private companies.
He has the latest, multi-use equipment, which allows for the exploration of a huge number of effects in outdoor image production – aerial (long-term overflight photographs) and aquatics, for example – and indoor – architecture, studio, events, etc.
“In a photo shoot, such as fashion for example, I look to associate the theme to the reality which I find in my surroundings. I blend various aesthetics, using not only the street photographer technique, but making use of other resources which allow me to value the architecture of cities and their celebrations, with their variety of lighting.”
SHOOTS
- “Sal, o fim de uma era” – extensive documetation of the end of the 100-year-old salt mines in Rio de Janeiro (1999)
- “Igrejas Neogóticas de Petrópolis” – book on the architecture of the imperial city of Petrópolis (2000)
- “Manchete Carnaval” special – photographic editor (2005, 2006 and 2007)
- “Edifício: Cidade Nova” – 21-month shoot on the construction of the first Greenbuiding in Rio de Janeiro (2006 – 2008)
- “Circuito Sítios Históricos da República” – Calendar, Ministry for Culture (2010)
- “Cooperativa de Queijos de Idanha a Nova” – extensive photo shoot on one of the ex-libris of Portuguese cuisine (2011)
EXHIBITIONS
- “Alegoria dos Poros” (Casa da Guia, Cascais, Portugal, 2011)
- “Suburbana” (Coletiva, Galeria Pretos novos, 2012)
- “Santo Forte” (Individual, Instituto Pretos Novos – IPN – Galeria Preto Novos, 2013)
- “Alegoria dos Poros” (Individual, Estação Cultura, Campinas, 2014)
- “Bodies in Transit” four contemporary artists (Coletiva, Firehouse Gallery, Nova York, 2015)
- “Vale dos Reis” (Individual, Centro Cultural Justiça Federal – CCJF, Gabinete de Fotografia, 2016)