Since the Big Bang of the 19th century, the universe of photography has continued to expand. Cell phones have swallowed cameras, cameras have devoured video cameras, and a visual torrent has overwhelmed the feeds. In this edition, photography is dissected to expose its association with other disciplines and to map a world in dire need of research and reflection. This is what the skull on the cover suggests, an ironic flaking portrait, done by André Penteado in his research on the French Mission that arrived in Brazil in 1816. Like an archaeologist, the photographer has collected visual pieces to enrich our understanding of the puzzle that is the history of Brazil – a topic also faced with refinement by essayist Mauricio Puls when he discusses the meaning of true and false in our press photography. The Nigerian photographer J. D.’Okhai Ojeikere has united anthropology and typology in his study of hairstyles, exposing the roots of an ephemeral cultural tradition.

In addition to being beautiful photographic objects, painted photographic portraits tell the intimate story of an aspect of popular photography that still needs to be researched. The selfies of @ex_miss_febem show without constraints the self-exposure and exhibitionism of the 21st century to discuss the visual exploitation of the female body. The language of amateurism reappears in a historical text by the artist Jeff Wall on the fundamental aesthetics of art photography. The subject of a memorable retrospective, Ed van der Elsken shows a foreigner eye on his film and photography, in books and projections, while Vania Toledo looks into the nocturnal creatures of her archive. Finally, the workshops of Vídeo nas Aldeias are an original and successful example of the democratization of the image. We have gained a brave new world.