Genealogy of astonishment: Heloisa Buarque de Hollanda and the peripheral turn

Abstract

The essay explores the “peripheral turn” in Brazilian cultural criticism through the work of Heloisa Buarque de Hollanda, now known as Heloisa Teixeira. It highlights her key initiatives, such as curating exhibitions focused on the peripheries, publishing book collections, and founding the “Universidade das Quebradas.” Rather than interpreting the content of these initiatives, the essay places greater emphasis on their “form”, in line with Susan Sontag’s approach. To understand them as a repertoire of forms that hold significance within Brazilian society and culture, the essay situates the author’s peripheral turn within a genealogical series, which we term the “astonishment” of the Brazilian intellectual at the “people’s” capacity for agency. In doing so, the essay seeks to highlight Heloisa Buarque de Hollanda’s contributions to the democratization of culture in Brazil.