Midnigth Crossings

Paulista Avenue is more than just a busy street. It’s the heart of São Paulo, full of energy, skyscrapers, banks, big companies, and cultural centers. Everything moves fast, and the city feels alive even when you’re just passing through.

I came back to Brazil at the end of 2023, after a few years in China, and decided to live near Paulista. I was struggling with insomnia at the time, and many nights I found myself walking to Padaria Bella Paulista, open 24 hours. Crossing the avenue in the middle of the night, I kept running into people with nowhere to go, sleeping on the sidewalks, making the street their home.

I started photographing what I saw — some nights on the way to the bakery, some on the way back home. It became part of my routine. Slowly, I realized I was capturing a side of Paulista most people never see: its quiet, empty streets, its shadows, and the lives of people who usually go unnoticed.