Tecer de Varandas: Arte e Memória na Rede de Dormir em Viana/MA

Abstract

This research seeks to explore the hammock as a historical and cultural artifact in the city of Viana, Maranhão. Rooted in documentary methodology, the study draws from bibliographic and qualitative approaches, analyzing texts from books, scholarly journals, and databases such as SciELO and Google Scholar. Fieldwork was conducted through participant observation and informal conversations with members of the Viana Academy of Letters (AVL) and its youth division (AVLJ), embracing the diversity of Viana's people across generations, educational levels, and social classes. The work is anchored in historical records from scribes, travelers, and artists, as well as in the ethnographic writings of Câmara Cascudo (2003), which provide part of its theoretical foundation. Structured in three chapters, the first offers a review of literature on the hammock; the second investigates its historical, mnemonic, cultural, and symbolic meanings in Brazilian society; and the third delves into the perceptions of Viana’s residents, both young and old, shaped by their lived experiences. Field data reveals that, in Viana, the hammock is entwined with the rhythms of rest—whether strung in open verandas or closed rooms—and evokes memories of kin, childhood, play, drifting thoughts, and mental stillness. Its gentle sway soothes the heat, yet its presence in a home does not guarantee its nightly use. Many participants were unaware of any specific historical narrative tied to the hammock, though they recognized its roles: a seat for visitors, a bed for elders, a cradle of play for children—a democratic, multidisciplinary space where leisure and rest intertwine. Yet a silence lingers: the hammock bears the imprints of personal histories, embodying lives lived and dreams cradled. Amidst the rise of industrial production, the artisanal craft endures through the hands of Dona Isauderina, a weaver who sustains both her livelihood and the ancestral art of hammock-making in Viana. Through it, the thread of tradition remains unbroken.