Author Archives: Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Unknown's avatar

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.

Amazon River Dolphin Inia geoffrensis — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on December 24, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

The Amazon River dolphins, also known as the Boto Dolphins or Amazon Pink River Dolphins are playful, curious and intelligent mammals, the largest river dolphin species in the world. Known for their stunning pink coloured skin they are endangered due … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 9 Comments

The Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous Peoples and Wildlife in Peril! – a series of short films by Barbara Crane Navarro – 3 – « Washington – Amazon » 3:44

Posted on December 23, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« Washington – Amazon » alternates scenes from two art installations of my paintings and totemic sculptures in Washington D.C. and Arlington, Virginia, USA, with the « Fire Performance » burning of one of my totemic sculptures in the Yanomami village of Arata-Teri in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

White-Nosed Saki Chiropotes albinasus — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on December 23, 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 →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

The Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous Peoples and Wildlife in Peril! – a series of short films by Barbara Crane Navarro – 2 – « The Fire Sculpture » 2:26

Posted on December 22, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« The Fire Sculpture » alternates scenes of the « Fire Performance » burning of one of my totemic sculptures at Le Chaufferie in St. Maurice, France, with scenes of Yanomami daily life in their forest and village and the « Fire Performance » burning of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Kaapori Capuchin Cebus kaapori — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on December 22, 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 →

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

The Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous Peoples and Wildlife in Peril! – a series of short films by Barbara Crane Navarro – 1 – « The Way of the Shaman » 2:40

Posted on December 21, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

« The Way of the Shaman » alternates scenes from an art installation of my paintings and totemic sculptures at the Eyedrum Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, with scenes of Yanomami shamanic initiation and daily life in the forest and the village. … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Barbara Crane Navarro: Artist & Activist In Her Own Words — Palm Oil Detectives

Posted on December 21, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Bio: Barbara Crane Navarro Barbara Crane Navarro is a French artist, writer, Indigenous and animal activist who lives near Paris. From 1968 to 1973 she studied at Rhode Island School of Design, then she went on to study at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

L’arte è solo un altro oggetto di lusso, Cartier? – Senza Cartier! – Aggiornato!

Posted on December 20, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

La vera natura di Cartier 1 – Fondazione Cartier/Yanomami nel sito di estrazione dell’oro – fotomontaggio: Barbara Crane Navarro La Fondazione Cartier ha presentato la mostra “La lotta Yanomami” in quanto gli Yanomami hanno combattuto (e combattono ancora) contro l’industria … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

One Gold Band = Twenty TONS of TOXIC Waste! Yes, to make just One Gold Band, there is Twenty TONS of Toxic Waste !!!

Posted on December 20, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

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 … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

¿El arte es solo otro artículo de lujo, Cartier? – ¡Sin Cartier! – ¡Actualizado!

Posted on December 19, 2023 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Cartier’s True Nature 2 – Trienal de Milán/Yanomami en una mina de oro – montaje fotográfico: Barbara Crane Navarro La Fundación Cartier presentó la exposición “La Lucha Yanomami” en 2020 mientras los Yanomami luchaban (y aún luchan) contra la industria … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments