Entre o sertão e o imaginário : o sertão nas obras de Véio

Abstract

This monograph analyzes the work of the popular artist from Sergipe, Cícero Alves dos Santos, known as Véio, highlighting his creative trajectory and the way his sculptures transform the sertão into aesthetic language, collective memory, and cultural resistance. A self-taught artist, Véio uses discarded wood as raw material, revealing hybrid characters that move between the human and the mythical. His production, born from the simplicity of the sertanejo life, has achieved national and international recognition without losing its deep connection to his roots. The research is based on a qualitative and interpretative methodology, combining documentary analysis and aesthetic interpretation. As a primary source, the book Bonecos de pau: a felicidade de Véio (2025), written by his daughters Julia Katiene Pereira Santos and Katiuscia Pereira Santos, is used in dialogue with selected sculptures. This articulation between word and image allows us to understand how Véio’s work asserts itself as a guardian of collective memory and as an act of cultural resistance. Furthermore, the study incorporates critical perspectives from scholars, curators, and audiovisual records, situating his production both within the field of popular art and contemporary art. The monograph is organized into three chapters. The first presents Véio’s biography, his relationship with wood, and the tension between the human and the mythical in his sculptures. The second discusses different interpretations of his work and of the sertão, showing how his art is perceived in local and global contexts. The third analyzes the book Bonecos de pau: a felicidade de Véio in dialogue with specific works, exploring how happiness, memory, and resistance intertwine in his production. It is concluded that Véio is more than a popular artist: he is a guardian of collective memory, a creator of new languages, and a mirror of his community. His art, by transforming remnants into symbols, reaffirms that the sertão is not merely a space of scarcity, but a fertile territory of imagination and cultural dignity.