Author Archives: Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

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.

Un voyage vraiment magique ! – « La Magie de l’Amazonie Les aventures de Meromi, une fille Yanomami » – Pour les 8 à 12 à 100 ans! – écrit et illustré par Barbara Crane Navarro 

Posted on June 8, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« Le deuxième volume de la série Amazon Rainforest Magic raconte le voyage surprenant de Meromi, une fille Yanomami qui est entraînée dans une aventure inattendue dans les rivières et les jungles de l’Amazonie. C’est un voyage vraiment magique pour Meromi … Continue reading →

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White-Nosed Saki Chiropotes albinasus — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on June 8, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Curious, social and beautiful White-Nosed Sakis live in the canopies of Brazilian Amazonia. They are vulnerable from human-related threats including palm oil, soy and meat deforestation, mining and human persecution.Their main threats are habitat loss to mining, logging, cattle farming, … Continue reading →

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A truly magical journey! – « Amazon Rainforest Magic The adventures of Meromi, a Yanomami girl » – For ages 8 to 12 to 100!  – written and illustrated by Barbara Crane Navarro 

Posted on June 7, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« The second volume of the Amazon Rainforest Magic series recounts the surprising voyage of Meromi, a Yanomami girl who is swept into an unexpected adventure in the rivers and jungles of the Amazon.  It is a truly magical journey for Meromi as … Continue reading →

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Buffy-tufted-ear Marmoset Callithrix aurita — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on June 7, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

These enchanting and charismatic tiny monkeys have a distinct “gothic” appearance. They live deep in the forests of a tiny area of Brazil. Buffy-tufted-ear Marmosets are also known as buffy tufted-ear mamosets or the white-eared marmosets. They are New World … Continue reading →

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¡En el corazón de la selva tropicale! – « La magia de la Amazonia Las aventuras de Meromi, una niña Yanomami » – ¡Para edades de 8 a 12 a 100 años! – escrito e ilustrado por Barbara Crane Navarro

Posted on June 6, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« Un regalo de Navidad este año, leemos partes de este cuento en voz alta durante varias noches. Nuestro hijo de 8 años estaba ansioso por escuchar lo que vendría. Este tema era nuevo para él y le fascinaba conocer los … Continue reading →

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Santa Marta White-fronted Capuchin Cebus malitiosus — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on June 6, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Santa Marta White-fronted Capuchin Cebus malitiosus Endangered Colombia The Santa Marta white-fronted capuchin is threatened in Colombia by habitat loss and fragmentation due to cattle ranching and oil palm agro-industries. Pet trade may also pose imminent threats to wild populations … Continue reading →

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Au coeur de la forêt tropicale ! – « La Magie de l’Amazonie Les aventures de Meromi, une fille Yanomami » – Pour les 8 à 12 à 100 ans! – écrit et illustré par Barbara Crane Navarro

Posted on June 5, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« Un cadeau de Noël cette année, nous avons lu des parties de ce conte à haute voix pendant plusieurs soirées. Notre fils de 8 ans était impatient d’entendre ce qui allait suivre. Ce sujet était nouveau pour lui et il … Continue reading →

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Spectacled Bear Tremarctos ornatus — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on June 5, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Spectacled bears are known as the ‘peaceful and gentle bear’. They are the only bear living in the tropics of South America. Like many other animals in tropical ecosystems they are endangered. They get their name from their eye-catching markings … Continue reading →

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In the heart of the tropical forest! – «Amazon Rainforest Magic The adventures of Meromi, a Yanomami girl» – For ages 8 to 12 to 100!  – written and illustrated by Barbara Crane Navarro

Posted on June 4, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« A Christmas present this year, we spread the telling of this story over several evenings, reading it out loud. Our 8-year-old son couldn’t wait to hear what would come next.  This subject matter was new for him, and he was … Continue reading →

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Kaapori Capuchin Cebus kaapori — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on June 4, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

The Kaapori capuchin is on a knife-edge of survival – they are critically endangered. In 2017 their population had been decimated by 80% due to deforestation for agriculture including soy, cattle grazing and palm oil. They are forgotten animals with … Continue reading →

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