You are here: Home / NEWS / The cultural exchange between Brazil and France over the centuries

The cultural exchange between Brazil and France over the centuries

by Richard Meckien - published Jun 12, 2013 11:35 AM - - last modified Jun 19, 2013 03:50 PM

IEA's Brazil-France Research Group will launch the book 'Cinco Séculos de Presença Francesa no Brasil: Invasões, Missões, Irrupções' (Five Centuries of French Presence in Brazil: Invasions, Quests, Outbursts) on June 19.

Capa do livro "Cinco Séculos de Presença Francesa no Brasil"IEA's Brazil-France Research Group will launch the book 'Cinco Séculos de Presença Francesa no Brasil: Invasões, Missões, Irrupções' (Five Centuries of French Presence in Brazil: Invasions, Quests, Outbursts - so far only published in Portuguese) on June 19 at the João Alexandre Barbosa bookstore, owned by Edusp and located inside Brasiliana library. Organized by Leyla Perrone-Moisés, a member of the group, the book deals with the relations between the two countries throughout history.

The 13 papers that comprise the work result from the series of conferences held by the group in 2009, within the official program of the Year of France in Brazil. The set outlines a broad overview of cultural exchange between Brazil and France from the points of view of literature, photography, music, history, anthropology, architecture, theater and visual arts.

Following the chronological order of the key moments of the relations between the two countries, the texts explore the reciprocal influences - initiated soon at the time of Brazil's discovery - from a historical perspective that goes from the 16th to the 20th century.

Among the episodes covered there are the two attempts of colonization undertaken by France in the 16th and 17th centuries, the Artistic Mission of 1816, when French artists have been invited by the court to establish the first school of arts in Brazil, the presence of French theater in Brazil in the 19th century, and the Brazilian influence in the avant-garde musical work of the French composer Darius Milhaud.

The last four texts extrapolate those five centuries and raise questions about recent artistic manifestations of France as well as propose a reflection on the supposed 'decline of French culture'. According to Perrone-Moisés, coordinator of the cycle that led to the book, 'these current references allow us to continue the dialogue with the letters and the arts of the country that has left such deep marks in our culture'.