Dulcinéia Catadora is an artistic group that publishes books with cardboard covers. Launched in February, 2007 by the artist Lúcia Rosa, it was joined by cardboard collectors and their children (among them: Andréia Ribeiro, Marlon Emboava, Peterson Marques - all of them are around 19 years old), as well as the writers: Carlos P. Rosa, Rodrigo Ciríaco and Douglas Diegues  who give their contributions, selecting, editing texts, publicizing and selling D C' titles.

The group believes that this relationship between people with different backgrounds, activities, and views of the world is always a positive and enriching experience to everybody. It values the work of cardboard collectors, social inclusion and to develop the creative and artistic potential of its members. As a daily praxis, the group buys cardboard cases collected in the streets by collectors called "carroceiros" (street collectors) at a price higher than that paid at "sucatas" (commercial outlets that buy scrap). These boxes are cut in a A4 size and then the pieces of cardboard are painted with gouache by all members of the group. Each book is sold for 5 reais. Besides being a way of bringing income, these activities developed in the studio promote self-esteem, encourage people to share experiences, and to enjoy making a creative work. The atelier is an open space, a meeting place. To publicize the work of new and unknown writers is another fundamental goal of the project.

The group derived from Eloísa Cartonera, a well-known group which began its activities in Argentina almost five years ago, with an intensive artistic and social work. Eloísa was invited to participate of 27ª Biennial of São Paulo and it set a studio where artists from Argentina worked with Lucia Rosa, a Brazilian artist, and children of cardboard collectors. All together, they've painted cardboard covers with gouache and assembled their books from October, the 7^th to December, 17^th.

A long conversation with Javier Barilaro, one of the creators of the group, took place in the beginnings of 2006, reinforcing to both the value of the relational aesthetics as an artistic approach.

 At this time, Lucia Rosa had been working with cardboard collectors (some of them homeless, living in the streets) and recorded conversations she had with them in their own environment which were part of a work made of cardboard boxes.

[this work was part of a collective presentation at a public library in  Pari, São Paulo.. It consisted of multilayered cardboard structures holes within its construction. From these holes, echoed a discourse clipped up from the conversations.]

When Eloísa came to Biennal, the group wanted to reproduce its studio so that they could show how they worked in Buenos Aires. Cardboard collectors should be invited to participate of the activities developed in the studio. This task was left to Lúcia Rosa, who approached Movimento Nacional dos Catadores de Recicláveis about this possibility. Teenagers, children of cardboard collectors who work in one of the many recycling cooperatives operating in São Paulo, were selected to participate of their presentation. After biennial, the new group, now called Dulcineia Catadora, was created in Brazil early in 2007, inaugurating its activities with Sarau da Cooperifa, a collection of poems written by poets who live in the outskirts of São Paulo and who meet every Wednesday evenings at Bar do Zé Batidão.

At the same time, two panels were made by the Brazilian group, and with the participation of Javier Barilaro, at SESC Pompéia, an artistic intervention, that has being followed by another participation of the group in Virada Cultural of São Paulo, with a urban intervention in the city of Sorocaba. Afterwards came Cátia, Simone e Outras Marvadas, a book of poems of Sebastião Nicomedes, who has lived in the streets of São Paulo for three years and succeeded in moving to a small room five months ago (now he is struggling to survive with writing works and informal work). He is an important voice, working as activist in defense of homeless people and member of several social movements. We also launched Vera do Val, who had two of her books for children published by Martins Fontes ed. and wrote Os Filhos do Marimbondo, a collection de short stories based on research she made of Indian tales from Amazonia. It's a valuable title since it rescues our cultural roots.

DC is a Project of social sculpture, that is, a society perceived as a sculpture which can be better shaped. Some of the books published were part of Eloisa's catalogue, such as O Anjo Esquerdo da Poesia, (The Left Angel of Poetry) by Haroldo de Campos, Delírios Lìricos (Lyric Deliria), by Glauco Mattoso, and Chuvosos (Rainy), by Wilson Bueno. On the occasion of the biennial, Manoel de Barros, a renowned author of many poetry books, gave Auto-retrato aos 90 anos (Self-portrayal in the Nineties) as a gift to the group.

Selection of new authors is based on the literary quality of their works; special attention is given to social and political issues, to stories that somehow can give voice to minorities. Irreverence, the questioning of social values, discussions of themes still considered taboo in the 21th century  are other aspects found in the majority of published works.

DC is the fourth Project created in Latin America: besides Eloísa, there is a unit in Peru, called Sarita Cartonera, and Yerba Mala, in Bolivia. All groups are in contact to each other, and the titles can be translated into Portuguese or vice-versa whenever the groups find convenient to do so. The group moves against the editorial market, working hard to open their own pathways in the History of Latin American literature.

Published Titles

Antonio Miranda   S. Fernando Beira-Mar

Camila do Valle   Roubei e Engoli um Colar

Carlos Pessoa   Rosa Não Sei Não

Christian De Napoli   Palitos e Picolés

Daniel Faria   Matéria-prima

Douglas Diegues   Uma Flor

Eliana Pougy   Poesiaminha Nada

Flávio V. Amoreira   Os Contornos da Serra...

Glauco Mattoso   Delírios Líricos

H. de Campos   O Anjo Esquerdo da Poesia

Jorge Mautner   Susi

Luis Chaves   Anotações para uma cúmbia

Manoel de Barros   Auto-retrato aos 90 anos

Marcelo Ariel   Me Enterrem com a Minha AR 15

M. D'Ávila e V. do Val   Do Nada ao Infinito

Oswaldo Reynoso   Cara de Anjo

Poetas da Cooperifa   Sarau

S. Nicomedes   Cátia, Simone e Outras Marvadas

Vera do Val   Os Filhos do Marimbondo

Virgínia de Medeiros   Studio Butterfly

Wilson Bueno   Chuvosos

contact:  dulcineia.catadora @gmail.com

T         11 8198 0252

Sale at

_          Rua Padre João Gonçalves, 100 – Pinheiros

_          Mercearia S. Pedro, Rua Rodésia, 54 – Vila Madalena

_          or e-mail your order.