Kappa Crucis

The “Kappa Crucis” star cluster, nicknamed the “Jewel Box” (in reference to the multi-coloured flashes of the stars comparable to a collection of precious stones), is visible to the naked eye in the Southern Hemisphere and, for example, from the anonymous hangar where Bernardo Riedel, a legend of Brazilian astronomy, works in the Belo Horizonte suburb. This discreet man begins his day by listening to the messages left on his answering machine (“Bernardo, have you seen the latest images of Pluto?”), to birdsongs, or to Beethoven. He makes telescopes, polishes lenses, gets annoyed with administrative hassles or sits on the terrace in order to “float in space” with the help of his binoculars. In static shots, João Borges films the equally banal and extraordinary daily routine of the “professor”, a man who stands between two space-times. He covers his face to respect God during the opening prayer at the family dinner with the same hands that make the “mechanical eyes” which will let us daydream on the immensity of the universe, still inaccessible if not by sight.

Emmanuel Chicon

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