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.

“Cartier utiliza imágenes de la tribu amazónica devastada por la minería ilegal de oro. Los críticos lo llaman hipocresía” Los Yanomami dicen: “¿Cómo una empresa de joyería, a la que nos oponemos los Yanomami, puede usar la imagen de los Yanomami?” & “¡Quien compre un anillo de oro es parte del crimen!”

Posted on September 12, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

¿Este Eres tu?? Niño Yanomami que sufre de desnutrición e intoxicación por mercurio directamente relacionado con la minería de oro Objetivamente, Alain Dominique Perrin fue presidente de la casa de joyas, relojes y accesorios de oro Cartier de 1975 a … Continue reading →

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L’uso non autorizzato di immagini di una tribù amazzonica sul sito web di Cartier ha suscitato forti critiche! Gli Yanomami dicono: “Come può un’azienda di gioielli d’oro, contro la quale noi Yanomami ci opponiamo, usare l’immagine degli Yanomami?” & “Chiunque compri un anello d’oro è parte del crimine!”

Posted on September 11, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project
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21st Century COLONIALISM – implemented by Corporations and NGOs? Whose Survival is at stake here, Survival? The survival of the rainforests and Indigenous peoples or of Cartier and others in the gold and diamond jewelry industry? – If you plan to donate to an NGO, please read this first! – 2025!

Posted on September 10, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

“Man’s folly hath enhanced the value of gold and silver because of their scarcity; whereas nature, like a kind parent, hath freely given us the best things, such as air, earth, and water, but hath hidden from us those which … Continue reading →

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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?

Posted on September 9, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

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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Gold merchant Cartier’s use of Amazon tribe prompts Indigenous advocates to allege hypocrisy. Cartier uses images of Indigenous people devastated by illegal gold mining! – What is Cartier/Cartier Foundation, exactly?

Posted on September 8, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

This frame, which was removed from Cartier’s website, features an image of four Yanomami children playing in a lush green field while at the top of the page are links to purchase high-end jewelry. The French luxury jewelry brand said … Continue reading →

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Or légal et or illégal – Si Barrick Gold Corporation ou des orpailleurs cherchaient de l’or dans votre arrière-cour et contaminaient votre seule source d’eau avec du cyanure ou du mercure, vous décoreriez-vous toujours avec des bijoux, des montres et des accessoires en or ?

Posted on September 7, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Un site d’extraction d’or légale contamine les terres autochtones avec du cyanure  Droit à la Vie sur les bénéfices légaux de l’or ! Plus vous en savez, moins l’or brille ! Rien ne dit « je t’aime » comme… 20 … Continue reading →

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Ouro Legal e Ouro Ilegal – Se a Barrick Gold Corporation ou os garimpeiros estivessem escavando seu jardim e contaminando sua única fonte de água com cianeto ou mercúrio, você ainda estaria enfeitado com joias, relógios e acessórios de ouro?

Posted on September 5, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Local legal de mineração de ouro contamina terras Indígenas com cianeto! Direito à vida em vez de lucros legais de ouro! Local illegal de mineração de ouro contamina terras Indígenas com mercúrio! Nada diz “eu te amo” como… 20 toneladas … Continue reading →

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Oro legal y oro ilegal: si Barrick Gold Corporation o los mineros de oro estaban excavando tu jardín y contaminaran su única fuente de agua con cianuro o mercurio, ¿seguiría ataviado con joyas, relojes y accesorios de oro?

Posted on September 4, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

¡Derecho a la vida en lugar de ganancias de oro legal! ¡Cuanto más sabes, menos oro brilla! Nada dice “Te amo” como… ¡¿20 toneladas de desechos mineros?! ¡Esa es la cantidad de desechos de roca extraídos y descartados para producir … Continue reading →

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Oro legale e oro illegale – Se la Barrick Gold Corporation oi cercatori d’oro stessero cercando l’oro nel tuo cortile e contaminassero la tua unica fonte d’acqua con cianuro o mercurio, saresti ancora decorato con gioielli, orologi e accessori d’oro?

Posted on September 3, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Diritto alla vita invece dei profitti legali in oro! Più sai, meno l’oro brilla! Niente dice “ti amo” come… 20 tonnellate di rifiuti minerari?! Questa è la quantità di rifiuti di roccia estratti e scartati per produrre la quantità di … Continue reading →

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Neo-Colonialism – Legal and Illegal Gold Mining and other Extractive Industries vs Indigenous Peoples, Wildlife and Water!

Posted on September 2, 2025 by Barbara Crane Navarro - Rainforest Art Project

Legal gold mine – photo: Barrick Gold Corporation “Every day I wake up and all I see around me is pain and sadness because Barrick Gold killed everything here. Everything is dead.” says Torres, whose family has lived in Las Lagunas … Continue reading →

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