Monument to the first South American photograph
September 9, 2016On January 16th, 1840, only six
months after the official announcement in Paris of the invention of photography, Louis
Compte made the first three photographs in South America,
picturing the Imperial Palace and its surroundings. The daguerreotypes and their process were shown to the young Brazilian emperor, Pedro II, who became the first Brazilian photographer and an important supporter of photography throughout the 19th century.
To celebrate this event, on September 9th, 2016, a monument was erected on Praça XV square in downtown Rio. Idealised by Milton Guran, director of FotoRio - Rio de Janeiro’s international photo festival, it was sponsored by the city governments of Rio de Janeiro and Paris.
