Jen Roth-Gordon publishes two articles on electrical tape bikinis and "perfect" tan lines

Together with her colleague Erika Robb Larkins, Jen Roth-Gordon explores the recent Brazilian trend of purchasing electrical tape bikinis (constructed directly onto one’s body) to achieve “a marquinha perfeita” (perfect little tan lines). To further explore the racial and visibility politics of this new beauty practice, check out: “Solar Seduction: Aesthetic Labor and Racial Discipline in Brazil’s Newest Tanning Craze” in American Anthropologist (click here) and “Tanning with Anitta – the New Girl from Ipanema: Creating Visibility Capital in a Global Look Economy” in Latin American Research Review (click here). These publications are part of a larger research project on race and extreme heat in Rio de Janeiro and the Imperial Valley which had been funded by the National Science Foundation until the cancellation of the grant in April 2025.