Black Helvetia

Dom Smaz is a Swiss-Brazilian photographer. In Helvécia, he used his camera for a historical research. The place with the speaking name was formerly a German-Swiss settlement that developed into one of Brazil’s most important coffee plantations in the 19th century. Smaz met the descendants of the enslaved and the former white elite. While physical evidence of the history is sparse, the photographs embrace the rich atmosphere of the place.

See also: Dom Smaz, Milena Machado Neves (eds.): Helvécia. A Swiss Colonial History in Brazil, Zurich 2022.