Monumentos, esculturas e espaço público: a imaginária urbana em Juiz de Fora/MG (1906-2016)

Abstract

Contemporary cities have undergone major transformations, both urban and social, that encourage the study of the urban history of these built environments. In this sense, based on the assumption that public art, here understood as a representative of the urban imaginary, can reveal the symbolic contents about a certain public space. Therefore, this study aims to understand the intentions of the urban imaginary in three urban objects of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais-Brazil: the monument to Christ the Redeemer, in the Emperor’s Hill; The landmark of the Centenary of Juiz de Fora, in the Pantaleone Arcuri square; and the contemporary sculpture called "Releitura de Abaporu", in the Antonio Carlos square. In this way, we obtain three temporal cuts of the public art production in the city, respectively in the years 1906, 1951 and 2015. The methodology used seeks to analyze these elements as representatives of the signed times, as well as the trajectory of interventions in these places through the actions of the various social agents involved in these processes of urban transformation. Thus, the intention is to demonstrate that these objects are synthesizers of the landscape and reveal contents of the social memory and urban history of Juiz de Fora.