a family's FOCUS on primal FORCES.

• Author: Snow, K. Mitchell

In powerful images of man and nature, photographers Mario Cravo neto and his son Christian explore hidden dimensions of Brazilian culture

Perhaps it is the hypnotic rhythms of that well-traveled sea, or the harmonic pull of Candomble, the religion of so many of their countrymen, but the urge to explore their native Bahia through art cuts across every generation of the Cravo family.

Both Mario Cravo Neto and his son Christian count their experience in the workshop of sculptor Mario Cravo Junior, the patriarch of this multi-generational family of Bahian artists, as key to the development of their individual visions. "My interest in art and photography began in my early years," Christian explains, emphasizing the importance of his grandfather's studio. "My toys were his big sculptures, so 'for me this was reality. It doesn't take much in these circumstances for a child to reach out to a stone or pieces of metal and put them together.... I believe that what grabbed me was part this firsthand encounter with the world of art, but I also believe the talent is transmitted from one generation to the other through our genes. It's a question of learning how to bring out our natural talent."

Mario Cravo Neto's photographs are elegant meditations on the role of man and nature in African-rooted religions. They provide compelling windows into the soul of Bahia. Viewing his meticulously composed, immaculately printed photographs, it might be difficult to imagine that Cravo Neto's work also began in the chaos of a sculptor's studio; yet his photographs have an overwhelmingly sculptural and tactile quality.

Mario Cravo Junior began his career in the studio of Pedro Ferreira, who specialized in religious sculpture. Cravo Junior's own work, however, would grow in a distinctly different direction, embracing his interest in the natural world, in flight, and in the formal possibilities inspired by popular dance. He had his first solo show in his home of Salvador in 1947, then moved to New York for a semester of study and several years of work.

Within a few years, however, Cravo Junior felt the pull of his native Bahia, where he joined a group of young arts that included Rubens Valentin and Carlos Bastos, and launched an enthusiastic exploration of the possibilities offered by new technology. In 1955 he was one of the featured artists in Sao Paulo's history-making first biennial and won the exhibition's prestigious purchase prize for young sculptors. Within a few years, he was selected to represent Brazil at the Venice Biennale. Following his success in Venice, Cravo Junior was invited to Germany, where he spent a year and a half with his family, teaching and showing his work. From there it was on to the United States for a tour of the leading universities, before returning to Brazil.

Young Mario Cravo Neto accompanied his father on these journeys and, along with his father, made the acquaintance of such cultural giants as Igor Stravinsky and influential British art critic Herbert Reed. As impressive as these encounters must have been, they did not influence his decision to adopt art as a career. Cravo Neto says that by the time his father moved the family to Berlin photography had already become part of his life--again as a direct result of his experience in...