Brasilia is a utopia made real. Between 1958 and 1997 Swiss Magnum photographer René Burri documented the emergence of the city built from scratch, focusing first on its construction and then on everyday life in Brazil’s new capital. Most of these photographs have never before been published. René Burri. Brasilia presents this rich store of material with its uniquely metaphorical, unmediated view of a city in the process of becoming. The color and black-and-white photographs show architectural icons as well as plots of land wrested from primordial forest seen from an airplane. Enlivened with an essay as well as numerous documents, the book also features some of the portraits that Burri is famous for, atmospheric images of the inauguration parties, and street scenes. What shines through them all is the sheer effort invested in this gargantuan feat, the upbeat mood of the age, and the visionary dimensions of Brasilia.

Brasilia is a utopia made real. Between 1958 and 1997 Swiss Magnum photographer René Burri documented the emergence of the city built from scratch, focusing first on its construction and then on everyday life in Brazil’s new capital. Most of these photographs have never before been published. René Burri. Brasilia presents this rich store of material with its uniquely metaphorical, unmediated view of a city in the process of becoming. The color and black-and-white photographs show architectural icons as well as plots of land wrested from primordial forest seen from an airplane. Enlivened with an essay as well as numerous documents, the book also features some of the portraits that Burri is famous for, atmospheric images of the inauguration parties, and street scenes. What shines through them all is the sheer effort invested in this gargantuan feat, the upbeat mood of the age, and the visionary dimensions of Brasilia.

In 2011 René Burri was awarded the Swiss Press Photo Lifetime Achievement Award.