Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro

This chapter focuses on two aesthetic practices on the urban periphery of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. First, I discuss applications of bright, deliberately eye-catching makeup in the context of professional makeup salons, among amateur enthusiasts, and in relation to women’s empowerment classes at a com...

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Autor principal: Novacich, Samuel
Formato: Online
Lenguaje:inglés
Publicado: Firenze University Press 2023
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Acceso en línea:ONIX_20230501_9788855186612_61
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author Novacich, Samuel
author_browse Novacich, Samuel
author_facet Novacich, Samuel
author_sort Novacich, Samuel
collection Directory of Open Access Books
description This chapter focuses on two aesthetic practices on the urban periphery of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. First, I discuss applications of bright, deliberately eye-catching makeup in the context of professional makeup salons, among amateur enthusiasts, and in relation to women’s empowerment classes at a community center in a small favela located in Rio’s downtown. Second, I describe a tanning practice known as marquinha (little mark), in which strips of tape are applied to the body and used to create precise tan lines. Taking as a starting point the assertion that aesthetics and political dynamics are inextricably entwined, I draw comparisons between these aesthetic practices and their relation to questions of sexuality and desire, power and self-empowerment, and to questions of race. In Rio de Janeiro, as elsewhere, aesthetics are particularly important to the politics of inequality that define the urban landscape. And while aesthetics may often express ideas and indeed “say something” about their practitioners, they are hardly just passive reflections of society. This chapter focuses instead on the pragmatic power of makeup and marquinha to “causar” (to cause) and make real material impacts on viewers. In describing these practices as pragmatic, I call attention to aesthetics as a relational practice that mediates between the self and other, and invites new social possibilities. As such, makeup and marquinha are understood as co-constitutive of the contexts within which they are found, shaping not only relations between individuals and things, but also, one’s understanding of the self.
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spelling doab-20.500.12854ir-997162025-07-17T12:15:34Z Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro Novacich, Samuel aesthetics semiotics Brazil the body pragmatics thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences This chapter focuses on two aesthetic practices on the urban periphery of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. First, I discuss applications of bright, deliberately eye-catching makeup in the context of professional makeup salons, among amateur enthusiasts, and in relation to women’s empowerment classes at a community center in a small favela located in Rio’s downtown. Second, I describe a tanning practice known as marquinha (little mark), in which strips of tape are applied to the body and used to create precise tan lines. Taking as a starting point the assertion that aesthetics and political dynamics are inextricably entwined, I draw comparisons between these aesthetic practices and their relation to questions of sexuality and desire, power and self-empowerment, and to questions of race. In Rio de Janeiro, as elsewhere, aesthetics are particularly important to the politics of inequality that define the urban landscape. And while aesthetics may often express ideas and indeed “say something” about their practitioners, they are hardly just passive reflections of society. This chapter focuses instead on the pragmatic power of makeup and marquinha to “causar” (to cause) and make real material impacts on viewers. In describing these practices as pragmatic, I call attention to aesthetics as a relational practice that mediates between the self and other, and invites new social possibilities. As such, makeup and marquinha are understood as co-constitutive of the contexts within which they are found, shaping not only relations between individuals and things, but also, one’s understanding of the self. 2023-05-02T04:12:48Z 2023-05-02T04:12:48Z 2023-05-01T13:39:12Z 2022 chapter ONIX_20230501_9788855186612_61 https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/62645 9788855186612 https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/99716 eng Ricerche. Architettura, Pianificazione, Paesaggio, Design open access image/jpeg image/jpeg Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/62645/1/chapter-36803.pdf https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/62645/1/chapter-36803.pdf Firenze University Press 10.36253/978-88-5518-661-2.03 10.36253/978-88-5518-661-2.03 2ec4474d-93b1-4cfa-b313-9c6019b51b1a 9788855186612 22 Florence open access
spellingShingle aesthetics
semiotics
Brazil
the body
pragmatics
thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences
thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences
Novacich, Samuel
Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro
title Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro
title_full Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro
title_fullStr Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro
title_full_unstemmed Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro
title_short Chapter Makeup and marquinha: aesthetics of the bodily surface in Rio de Janeiro
title_sort chapter makeup and marquinha aesthetics of the bodily surface in rio de janeiro
topic aesthetics
semiotics
Brazil
the body
pragmatics
thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences
thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences
topic_facet aesthetics
semiotics
Brazil
the body
pragmatics
thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences
thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences
url ONIX_20230501_9788855186612_61
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