Vincent
Catala

Vincent Catala

biography

French photographer, member of Agence VU’ since 2014, lives and works between Brazil and France.

Graduating in 2000 with a Master’s degree in Intellectual Property (McGill University, Canada), Vincent Catala trained as a self-taught photographer before establishing himself as a professional photographer in 2006. In his commissions as well as in his personal work, he approaches the relationship of the individual to his space, and shows, by contextualizing them, their subjective representations: solitude, freedom, presence in the world…

Sensitive to long-term approaches, he is interested in specific territories, both very defined but complex, which give a certain representation of the world, and where the idea of a universality is played out through encounters and a given geography.

In his personal work, his gaze is set on the margins and peripheries of large cities, in which he has wandered relentlessly, sometimes for years. Since 2013, he has been drawing the portrait of a Brazil crossed by doubts and disenchantment, from the western zone of Rio de Janeiro to the region of São Paulo and Brasília in 2022.

In parallel to his personal work, he responds to public and private commissions related to urbanism and architecture, in Brazil and in Europe. He produces portraits for the French and international press, particularly of figures from the Brazilian cultural life and underground, as well as stories about life in Brazil (published in M le Monde, Télérama, Fisheye Magazine, Revista ZUM, etc.).

His work has also been the subject of numerous exhibitions in Paris, Amman, Los Angeles, Rio de Janeiro, Tbilisi, Braga, Cadaqués, and has been the winner of many awards. In January 2015 he joined the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art of Rio de Janeiro (MAM/RJ). During the 2017 edition of Paris Photo, the VU’ gallery presented some of his work on Brazil. In 2019, the Moreira Salles Institute did the same in São Paulo.

Series

Île Brésil, 2013 - 2023

Série | Here lies part of the Brazilian enigma, in this country where light illuminates as much as it obscures, where the idea of resistance is understood in an ambiguous duality : a force for movement but also an obstacle to change.

My body is political, 2024

Série | Vincent Catala follows the daily lives of members of the LGBTQIA+ community, between artistic performances, visibility events and more intimate moments captured in everyday life.

Political billboards, 2022

Series| Vincent Catala documents Bolsonarist propaganda billboards featuring the far-right candidate's campaign themes during the 2018 presidential election in Brazil.

Hotel Rosewood / Citade Matarrazo, São Paulo, 2022

Série | This "forest tower", designed by architect Jean Nouvel and decorated by Philippe Starck, stands in the heart of the Bela Vista district, on the space previously occupied by the Matarazzo maternity hospital, a famous Paulist hospital that saw the birth of more than 800,000 children during the 20th century.

Flights, Mata Atlantica, 2022

Série | An escape into the heart of the Mata Atlantica, the primary forest that begins a few dozen kilometers from the megalopolis of São Paulo and stretches for 300 kilometers to the coast of the state of São Paulo, before flowing into the ocean.

Botanical Garden, Rio de Janeiro 2021

series| Away from the noise and violence of the Brazilian megalopolis, Rio de Janeiro's botanical garden is home to 22,000 plants and trees from all over the world, as well as numerous animal species.

Cidade Bolsonaro, 2020

Serie | In the 2018 presidential election, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro scored his best national result here: 93% of the vote.

Copacabana does not answer anymore, 2020

Serie | An aging, precarious population in a densely populated urban area: all the ingredients were there to make the famous Copacabana district in Rio a breeding ground for the coronavirus pandemic.

Avenida Paulista, 2020

Serie | I spent every day in May 2020 photographing passers-by on Paulista Avenue, the city's emblematic - and longest - artery. At this date the pandemic is already raging in Brazil and São Paulo officially becomes the capital of the coronavirus in Latin America.

Casa de Vidro, 2020

Serie| Collaboration with the Lina Bo Bardi Foundation to photograph the Casa de Vidro, Morumbi, São Paulo.

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, 2020

Série| Report in a unit of the MST, Rio Grande do Sul.

Les Collèges Militaires brésiliens (project in progress)

Serie | During the election of Jair Bolsonaro, the military colleges were accused of spreading in the minds of the new Brazilian generations an ideology in tune with the thesis defended by the candidate - and now president - of the extreme right.

Inhotim, The main Contemporary of Art foundation in Latin America, 2018

Serie | Inhotim Museum, located in the heart of the state of Minas Gerais, is the main Contemporary of art Foundation in Latin America.

Pernambuco facing the zika virus, (2016 - 2017)

Serie | In 2016 Pernambuco and its capital, Recife, suddenly became the epicenter of an epidemia linked to the zika virus, before the wave receded and mysteriously disappeared the following year.

The Artistic Rio, 2017

Serie | Lifted up for the Olympic Games, Rio is still stretching out in Guanabara Bay, with its new museums and a profusion of galleries.

The news « City of God », 2016

Serie | Immersion on the outskirts of Rio, in the Colônia Juliano Moreira, one of the many social neighborhoods built from 2009 to rehouse the inhabitants of the favelas.

NNIPAS, 2016

Serie | The NNIPAS project (acronym of “Nous N'Irions Pas Si” “We would not go if”) is written by several hands (photographer, illustrator, writer - the images presented here are all by Vincent Catala).

Balard, Future Ministry of Defense, 2013

Serie | Throughout 2013, Vincent Catala has been commissioned by the Ministry of Defense and the Bouygues Group (Project Manager) to produce a photographic work.

The island, 2012

Serie | The serie was made in Cuba between 2010 and 2012

Jane la nuit tombe, (2008 - 2010)

Serie | 2008: I meet by chance Jane in Rio. Jane is a prostitute. She accepts that I follow her on her working nights.

Île Brésil, 2013 - 2023

Série | Here lies part of the Brazilian enigma, in this country where light illuminates as much as it obscures, where the idea of resistance is understood in an ambiguous duality : a force for movement but also an obstacle to change.

My body is political, 2024

Série | Vincent Catala follows the daily lives of members of the LGBTQIA+ community, between artistic performances, visibility events and more intimate moments captured in everyday life.

Political billboards, 2022

Series| Vincent Catala documents Bolsonarist propaganda billboards featuring the far-right candidate's campaign themes during the 2018 presidential election in Brazil.

Hotel Rosewood / Citade Matarrazo, São Paulo, 2022

Série | This "forest tower", designed by architect Jean Nouvel and decorated by Philippe Starck, stands in the heart of the Bela Vista district, on the space previously occupied by the Matarazzo maternity hospital, a famous Paulist hospital that saw the birth of more than 800,000 children during the 20th century.

Flights, Mata Atlantica, 2022

Série | An escape into the heart of the Mata Atlantica, the primary forest that begins a few dozen kilometers from the megalopolis of São Paulo and stretches for 300 kilometers to the coast of the state of São Paulo, before flowing into the ocean.

Botanical Garden, Rio de Janeiro 2021

series| Away from the noise and violence of the Brazilian megalopolis, Rio de Janeiro's botanical garden is home to 22,000 plants and trees from all over the world, as well as numerous animal species.

Cidade Bolsonaro, 2020

Serie | In the 2018 presidential election, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro scored his best national result here: 93% of the vote.

Copacabana does not answer anymore, 2020

Serie | An aging, precarious population in a densely populated urban area: all the ingredients were there to make the famous Copacabana district in Rio a breeding ground for the coronavirus pandemic.

Avenida Paulista, 2020

Serie | I spent every day in May 2020 photographing passers-by on Paulista Avenue, the city's emblematic - and longest - artery. At this date the pandemic is already raging in Brazil and São Paulo officially becomes the capital of the coronavirus in Latin America.

Casa de Vidro, 2020

Serie| Collaboration with the Lina Bo Bardi Foundation to photograph the Casa de Vidro, Morumbi, São Paulo.

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, 2020

Série| Report in a unit of the MST, Rio Grande do Sul.

Les Collèges Militaires brésiliens (project in progress)

Serie | During the election of Jair Bolsonaro, the military colleges were accused of spreading in the minds of the new Brazilian generations an ideology in tune with the thesis defended by the candidate - and now president - of the extreme right.

Inhotim, The main Contemporary of Art foundation in Latin America, 2018

Serie | Inhotim Museum, located in the heart of the state of Minas Gerais, is the main Contemporary of art Foundation in Latin America.

Pernambuco facing the zika virus, (2016 - 2017)

Serie | In 2016 Pernambuco and its capital, Recife, suddenly became the epicenter of an epidemia linked to the zika virus, before the wave receded and mysteriously disappeared the following year.

The Artistic Rio, 2017

Serie | Lifted up for the Olympic Games, Rio is still stretching out in Guanabara Bay, with its new museums and a profusion of galleries.

The news « City of God », 2016

Serie | Immersion on the outskirts of Rio, in the Colônia Juliano Moreira, one of the many social neighborhoods built from 2009 to rehouse the inhabitants of the favelas.

NNIPAS, 2016

Serie | The NNIPAS project (acronym of “Nous N'Irions Pas Si” “We would not go if”) is written by several hands (photographer, illustrator, writer - the images presented here are all by Vincent Catala).

Balard, Future Ministry of Defense, 2013

Serie | Throughout 2013, Vincent Catala has been commissioned by the Ministry of Defense and the Bouygues Group (Project Manager) to produce a photographic work.

The island, 2012

Serie | The serie was made in Cuba between 2010 and 2012

Jane la nuit tombe, (2008 - 2010)

Serie | 2008: I meet by chance Jane in Rio. Jane is a prostitute. She accepts that I follow her on her working nights.

Île Brésil, 2013 - 2023

Série | Here lies part of the Brazilian enigma, in this country where light illuminates as much as it obscures, where the idea of resistance is understood in an ambiguous duality : a force for movement but also an obstacle to change.

My body is political, 2024

Série | Vincent Catala follows the daily lives of members of the LGBTQIA+ community, between artistic performances, visibility events and more intimate moments captured in everyday life.

Political billboards, 2022

Series| Vincent Catala documents Bolsonarist propaganda billboards featuring the far-right candidate's campaign themes during the 2018 presidential election in Brazil.

Hotel Rosewood / Citade Matarrazo, São Paulo, 2022

Série | This "forest tower", designed by architect Jean Nouvel and decorated by Philippe Starck, stands in the heart of the Bela Vista district, on the space previously occupied by the Matarazzo maternity hospital, a famous Paulist hospital that saw the birth of more than 800,000 children during the 20th century.

Flights, Mata Atlantica, 2022

Série | An escape into the heart of the Mata Atlantica, the primary forest that begins a few dozen kilometers from the megalopolis of São Paulo and stretches for 300 kilometers to the coast of the state of São Paulo, before flowing into the ocean.

Botanical Garden, Rio de Janeiro 2021

series| Away from the noise and violence of the Brazilian megalopolis, Rio de Janeiro's botanical garden is home to 22,000 plants and trees from all over the world, as well as numerous animal species.

Cidade Bolsonaro, 2020

Serie | In the 2018 presidential election, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro scored his best national result here: 93% of the vote.

Copacabana does not answer anymore, 2020

Serie | An aging, precarious population in a densely populated urban area: all the ingredients were there to make the famous Copacabana district in Rio a breeding ground for the coronavirus pandemic.

Avenida Paulista, 2020

Serie | I spent every day in May 2020 photographing passers-by on Paulista Avenue, the city's emblematic - and longest - artery. At this date the pandemic is already raging in Brazil and São Paulo officially becomes the capital of the coronavirus in Latin America.

Casa de Vidro, 2020

Serie| Collaboration with the Lina Bo Bardi Foundation to photograph the Casa de Vidro, Morumbi, São Paulo.

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, 2020

Série| Report in a unit of the MST, Rio Grande do Sul.

Les Collèges Militaires brésiliens (project in progress)

Serie | During the election of Jair Bolsonaro, the military colleges were accused of spreading in the minds of the new Brazilian generations an ideology in tune with the thesis defended by the candidate - and now president - of the extreme right.

Inhotim, The main Contemporary of Art foundation in Latin America, 2018

Serie | Inhotim Museum, located in the heart of the state of Minas Gerais, is the main Contemporary of art Foundation in Latin America.

Pernambuco facing the zika virus, (2016 - 2017)

Serie | In 2016 Pernambuco and its capital, Recife, suddenly became the epicenter of an epidemia linked to the zika virus, before the wave receded and mysteriously disappeared the following year.

The Artistic Rio, 2017

Serie | Lifted up for the Olympic Games, Rio is still stretching out in Guanabara Bay, with its new museums and a profusion of galleries.

The news « City of God », 2016

Serie | Immersion on the outskirts of Rio, in the Colônia Juliano Moreira, one of the many social neighborhoods built from 2009 to rehouse the inhabitants of the favelas.

NNIPAS, 2016

Serie | The NNIPAS project (acronym of “Nous N'Irions Pas Si” “We would not go if”) is written by several hands (photographer, illustrator, writer - the images presented here are all by Vincent Catala).

Balard, Future Ministry of Defense, 2013

Serie | Throughout 2013, Vincent Catala has been commissioned by the Ministry of Defense and the Bouygues Group (Project Manager) to produce a photographic work.

The island, 2012

Serie | The serie was made in Cuba between 2010 and 2012

Jane la nuit tombe, (2008 - 2010)

Serie | 2008: I meet by chance Jane in Rio. Jane is a prostitute. She accepts that I follow her on her working nights.

Interviews

VISION #47 – Vincent Catala
Vision(s)
—

2023

Interview on the genesis and development of the Ile Brésil series, in the Vision(s) podcast devoted to contemporary photography.

Listening

Vincent Catala – Rio, Invisible City
HSBC Award
—
2020

Vincent Catala talks about his project “Rio Invisible City”.

ZUM Festival 2019
ZUM Festival
—
2019

Tão longe, tão perto : interviews with artists Rosângela Rennó, Aleta Valente and Vincent Catala.
Institut Moreira Salles, São Paulo.

exhibitions

Rio, rivage intérieur

Event : Festival de l’Œil Urbain, Corbeil-Essonnes, France
Dates : From the 1st of April to the 22nd of May 2016

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Night(s)

Event : Exposition collective Nuit(s), Musée de la photographie André Villers, France
From the 15th of February to the 18th of May 2015

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