The Archival Project

This site attempts to address a gap in art historical narratives around Dutch Brazil (1624-1654) and bring visibility to the impact of the prominent fugitive community, the Quilombo dos Palmares (1605-1694). Palmares persisted throughout the duration of the seventeenth century, fighting back attacks from the colonial powers of both the Dutch and the Portuguese. The population of Palmares has been estimated to have reached 10,000-20,000. Dutch governmental officials actively considered Palmares a threat and sent expeditions against the independent community. Despite the size and historical significance of Quilombo dos Palmares, it often goes unnoticed and unincorporated in traditional histories of the visual culture of Dutch Brazil. This archive originates from a disciplinary perspective of art history and thus attempts to collate primary and secondary textual and artistic sources in a visual fashion that will elicit new connections and reorient our understanding of the impact of indigenous, enslaved, and fugitive communities on cultural production.

This archive is intended to be a tool for researchers, students, and the public to learn and foster new ideas about the history of early modern Brazil.

Contact

If you have any additions, suggestions, corrections, questions, or feedback, please feel free to get in contact with me at ariannaray@u.northwestern.edu.