An exhibition of the work of Brazilian photographer, Maureen Bisilliat (1931-), who turns 95 this year, is underway at the Embassy of Brazil in Tokyo. Bisilliat was born in England and after she moved to Brazil, became a photographer. An avid reader, she uses Brazilian literature as signposts in her explorative journeys.

Influenced by the writer João Guimarães Rosa’s novel “Grande Sertão: Veredas” (known in English as “The Devil to Pay in the Backlands”), Bisillat made five journeys to the sertão (the backlands) in the state of Minas Gerais from 1962 to 1966 where she took the photographs that are featured in this exhibition. The exhibition also features works from the photography collection A João Guimarães Rosa (To João Guimarães Rosa) which was born after a dialogue with Rosa. Bisillat casts her gaze on the lives of those who lived not only in this difficult, dry climate but also under a dictatorship, and masterfully captures these scenes in black-and-white photographs along with the natural elements of light, darkness, and the wind.

Exhibition: A João Guimarães Rosa – Maureen Bisilliat
Curation: Thyago Nogueira, Instituto Moreira Salles

Dates: April 22, 2026 – May 15
Opening Hours: 10:00-17:00 (Closed on Saturdays, Sundays, Public Holidays)
Venue: Embassy of Brazil in Japan (2-11-12 Kita Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo)