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.

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?

¡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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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?

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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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 ?

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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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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Todos los vivos son interdependientes: una entrevista con la artista Barbara Crane Navarro – Open Americas

“Amazon Rainforest Magic” y “La Magia de la Amazonia” et “La Magie de l’Amazonie”: Fantasy-Adventure books for children – ENGLISH, ESPAÑOL, FRANÇAIS – tales of Yanomami life in the Amazon Rainforest – ages 8 to 100!

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Tout le monde vivant est interdépendant: une question & réponse avec l’artiste Barbara Crane Navarro – Open Americas

“Amazon Rainforest Magic” y “La Magia de la Amazonia” et “La Magie de l’Amazonie”: Fantasy-Adventure books for children – ENGLISH, ESPAÑOL, FRANÇAIS – tales of Yanomami life in the Amazon Rainforest – ages 8 to 100!

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“All the Living World is Interdependent”: A Q&A with Artist Barbara Crane Navarro – Open Americas

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“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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« No all’ORO DEL SANGUE! – Niente Cartier! » Yanomami e gli Alberi contro Estrazione dell’Oro, avvelenamento da Mercurio e oggetti d’Oro di Lusso / Mostra 2025!

« Gli sciamani Yanomami che combattono l’epidemia di xawara vedono apparire l’immagine della malattia sotto forma di bande di stoffa scarlatta. L’epidemia di xawara si sta avvicinando e il suo fumo risplende! Rende il cielo un fantasma e divora tutto Umani … Continue reading

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« ¡No al ORO DE SANGRE! – ¡Nada de Cartier! » Yanomami y los Árboles contra Minería de Oro, envenenamiento por Mercurio y artículos de Oro de Lujo / Exposición 2025

« Los chamanes Yanomami que luchan contra la epidemia de xawara ven aparecer la imagen de la enfermedad en forma de bandas de tela escarlata. ¡La epidemia de xawara se acerca y su humo brilla! Hace que el cielo sea un fantasma y devora a … Continue reading

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