Author Archives: Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

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About Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

I'm a French artist living near Paris. From 1968 to 1973 I studied at Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island, then at the San Francisco Art Institute in San Francisco, California, for my BFA. My work for many decades has been informed and inspired by time spent with indigenous communities. Various study trips devoted to the exploration of techniques and natural pigments took me originally to the Dogon of Mali, West Africa, and subsequently to Yanomami communities in Venezuela and Brazil. Over many years, during the winters, I studied the techniques of traditional Bogolan painting. Hand woven fabric is dyed with boiled bark from the Wolo tree or crushed leaves from other trees, then painted with mud from the Niger river which oxidizes in contact with the dye. Through the Dogon and the Yanomami, my interest in the multiplicity of techniques and supports for aesthetic expression influenced my artistic practice. The voyages to the Amazon Rainforest have informed several series of paintings created while living among the Yanomami. The support used is roughly woven canvas prepared with acrylic medium then textured with a mixture of sand from the river bank and lava. This supple canvas is then rolled and transported on expeditions into the forest. They are then painted using a mixture of acrylic colors and Achiote and Genipap, the vegetal pigments used by the Yanomami for their ritual body paintings and on practical and shamanic implements. My concern for the ongoing devastation of the Amazon Rainforest has inspired my films and installation projects. Since 2005, I've created a perfomance and film project - Fire Sculpture - to bring urgent attention to Rainforest issues. To protest against the continuing destruction, I've publicly set fire to my totemic sculptures. These burning sculptures symbolize the degradation of nature and the annihilation of indigenous cultures that depend on the forest for their survival.

«A terra não é do homem, o homem é da terra. O homem não teceu a teia da vida, ele é apenas um fio. O que quer que ele faça com a teia da vida, ele faz isso consigo mesmo.» 

« Você está ensinando a seus filhos o que ensinamos a nossos filhos? Que a terra é nossa mãe? O que acontece com a terra acontece com todos os filhos da terra. Sabemos que a terra não pertence ao homem, o … Continue reading

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«La Terre n’appartient pas à l’homme, l’homme appartient à la Terre. L’homme n’a pas tissé la toile de la vie, il n’en est qu’un fil. Quoi qu’il fasse à la toile de la vie, il le fait à lui-même.»

« Enseignez-vous à vos enfants ce que nous avons enseigné à nos enfants ? Que la terre est notre mère ? Ce qui arrive à la terre arrive à tous les fils de la terre. Nous le savons, la terre n’appartient pas … Continue reading

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« The Earth does not belong to Man, Man belongs to the Earth. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself. »

 « Will you teach your children what we have taught our children? That the earth is our mother? What befalls the earth befalls all the sons of the earth. This we know – the earth does not belong to man, man … Continue reading

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Gold used in Italian wedding rings linked to Amazon deforestation – Gold used in EVERYTHING is linked to Amazon deforestation and the degradation of Indigenous lives!

Gold used in Italian wedding rings linked to Amazon deforestation – TDPel Media https://ift.tt/oqz2jt9  Gold used in Italian wedding rings linked to Amazon deforestation  TDPel Media Superforest via “deforestation” – Google News https://ift.tt/qC5K7NBGold used in Italian wedding rings linked to Amazon deforestation … Continue reading

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« We must protect the forests for those who can’t speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and trees. We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and children yet to be born. »

« I do not see a delegation for the Four Footed. I see no seat for the Eagles. We forget and we consider ourselves superior. But we are after all a mere part of Creation. And we must consider this in … Continue reading

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BE MY VALENTINE? Here are 13 Reasons Why You Should Boycott Gold For The Yanomami and ALL Indigenous People!— Palm Oil Detectives

Hunger for Gold in the Global North is fueling a living hell in the Global South. Here are 13 reasons why you should #BoycottGold4Yanomami13 Reasons Why You Should Boycott Gold For The Yanomami People — Palm Oil Detectives

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One Gold Band = Twenty TONS of TOXIC Waste! Yes, to make just One Gold Band, there is Twenty TONS of Toxic Waste ! Please DO NOT BUY GOLD for any reason! NO GOLD for VALENTINE’S DAY!

written by Mary K. Doyle and posted on “Midwest Mary”, Thursday, May 11 2023  Environment, Jewelry, Mining Pollution  We do love our luxuries and conveniences. Gold, silver, diamonds, and precious jewels make us feel sophisticated, elegant, and important. But how many of us are … Continue reading

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BE MY VALENTINE? Legal Gold and Illegal Gold – If Barrick Gold Corporation or wildcat prospectors were digging for gold in your back yard and contaminating your only source of water with cyanure or mercury, would you still decorate yourself with gold jewelry, watches and accessories?

Right to Life over legal gold profits ! Right to Life over illegal gold profits ! Nothing says “I love you” like… 20 tonnes of mining waste?! That’s how much waste rock is dug up and discarded to produce the amount of … Continue reading

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Did you know that gold kills Indigenous people and rare animals? Gold mining kills Indigenous peoples throughout the world like the Yanomami people of Brazil and Venezuela! – Palm Oil Detectives

Did you know that gold kills indigenous people and rare animals?

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Be My Valentine?”If they are devastating the Amazon in search of gold there is a buyer’s market. Who buys this gold? The big brands and brands in the fashion world?” Who then buys this gold as trinkets? Please, please make sure it’s not you!

PLEASE LISTEN TO THE YANOMAMI SHAMAN’S MESSAGE – THE PLEA OF THE RAINFOREST! – « Hey – Look at me We see you We tried to show you You never bothered to learn our language You were always looking down … Continue reading

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