Beyond the Surface: Exploring Mercury Contamination in the Amazon through Art and Literature

How does Amazonian art visually and verbally narrate the contamination of the human and
non-human landscape by heavy metals? How can the creative process and the artistic effect
of image and word convey poetry by exploring symbols, images and narratives that link the
political force of art with the promotion of environmental awareness? Considering traditional
knowledge, spirituality, and connections with territories and native peoples, the purpose of
this talk is to investigate the cultural and symbolic meaning embodied in works by Davi
Kopenawa, Denilson Baniwa, Jorge Bodanzky, among others, around the contamination of
the Amazon by mercury.