Through artistic imaginaries; media productions; social practices and spatial mappings; this book offers an insightful and original contribution to the understanding of Rio de Janeiro; one of the highly contested urban terrains in the world. Offering a rich diversity of examples extracted from lived experience; iconographic materials; and narratives; it provides innovative and compelling connections between theoretical questions and urban vignettes. Throughout the essays; the specificity of Rio de Janeiro is highlighted but framed in relation to theoretical questions that are relevant to major contemporary cities. The book underlines the dilemmas of a city that attempts to compete globally while confronting social inequality; violence; and novel forms of democratic agency. It retraces Rio de Janeirorsquo;s modernist memories as the former political/cultural capital of Brazilian intelligentsia and national culture. It explores Rio as a city of popular culture; mestizo legacies; media productions; and cultural innovation.
#2285443 in eBooks 2014-06-20 2014-06-20File Name: B00N57HWME
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Technical but informational.By sbfA bit too academic in style; but interesting facts are included. The site of El Tajin is marvelous so this book enhanced my understanding.1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. contextual and descriptive narrative to anchor what is otherwise obviously good research and technical accuracyBy Charles GoslinIt is a very detailed book that lacks a broad; contextual and descriptive narrative to anchor what is otherwise obviously good research and technical accuracy. If you are an afcionado of mesoamerican arcana; archeological detail ad nauseum...go for it. Like reading a seriously boring doctoral thesis. For hours.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Exception Detail in a Easy to Read FormatBy Hector CordovaThis book is fundamental to anyone that studies Mesoamerica. It is of particular interest if your field encompasses any of these areas: Teotihuacan; Epi-Classic; Olmec Studies -- just to mention a few. El Tajin rose after the fall of Teotihuacan and was within the sphere of Teotihuacan influence. It was also one of the dominant sites during the Epi Classic - early Post Classic era along with Xochicalco; Tula and others. El Tajin is located in Huastec territory and was part of the Olmec homelands in prior centuries. The ability to read and decipher the glyphs and murals of this site help in the study of Zuyua for those that study this concept. It is also vital for anyone interested in Mesoamerican cosmology as a whole. Koontz takes a very logical; step by step approach in explaining the concepts and interpreting the images found at the site. If you ever are fortunate to visit this site in person; please take this book along with you. It is an amazing experience.
