Militão Augusto de Azevedo
Militão Augusto de Azevedo (June 18, 1837 – May 24, 1905) was a Brazilian photographer and actor who worked in the late 19th century. He began as a stage actor in Rio de Janeiro, joining groups such as Companhia Joaquim Heliodoro and Companhia Dramática Nacional. In 1862 he moved to São Paulo, where he started his career in photography while continuing to act.
He became a portrait artist at the Carneiro & Gaspar studio in the 1850s and, in 1875, bought the business and renamed it Photographia Americana. The studio, located in front of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary, offered some of the city’s lowest prices. Militão photographed a wide range of subjects, including urban scenes, buildings, streets, and famous performers, and he is noted for portraying Afro-Brazilian residents as ordinary citizens rather than slaves.
His clients included Dom Pedro II, Empress Teresa Cristina, Castro Alves, Joaquim Nabuco, and Ruy Barbosa. He also created albums showing how São Paulo and nearby areas changed over time, such as Álbum Comparativo de Vistas da Cidade de São Paulo (1862–1887) and other city-view albums.
By 1884 the photography market grew, but Militão faced financial problems. In 1885 he sold Photographia Americana and traveled to Europe, keeping the business records. The collection of his work, more than 12,000 photos, was later acquired by the Roberto Marinho Foundation in 1996 and donated to the Museu do Ipiranga at the University of São Paulo. He died in São Paulo on May 24, 1905. His work is housed at the Museu Paulista (Paulista Museum) at USP, preserving thousands of portraits from his studio.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 19:24 (CET).