Rural culture in social media feeds and in the city: some reflections on design and sustainability

The article concerns a case study of a store at Velho Mercado Novo (Old New Market) in Belo Horizonte, a recent occupation that reuses spaces and objects in the city’s traditional Mercado Novo. The study of Café Jetiboca reveals a taste for the old, but also the recreation of bonds between the countryside and the city through design. The representation of artisanal, rural culture takes place in multiple scales and supports, in physical and virtual environments. The research framework is the debate between consumerist culture and the search for sustainability. Design theories complement the discussion when they argue for the necessity of cultural reconstruction focusing on daily life and its contexts. When seeking this cultural transformation, the design actions taken show a desire for other ways of life and new habits that value memory instead of constant renewal.