THE FACE, THE NAME AND THE QUOTE: POETICS AND POLITICS OF SPECTRALITY ON MARIELLE FRANCO STAIRCASE

Abstract

The paper aims to reflect on spectrality as the political meaning effect produced using street art in a popular monument in honor of Marielle Franco, in São Paulo, Brazil. To accomplish this goal, the study sought to examine how some of the peripheral forces triggered by the movement of mourning and memory for Marielle were semiotically shaped in the artistic-activist intervention. The analysis focuses on three elements in the making of the monument: Marielle’s face in the portrait, her name, and a quote. The text articulates theoretical discussions on mourning, agency, spectrality, memory, alterity, and peripheral perspectives on references and legacy. The interpreting work points to the projection of the idea of legacy, the indexing of anger, the mobilization for justice and equality, and the ethical confrontation of otherness.