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.

Aventures chamaniques – « La Magie de l’Amazonie Les aventures de Meromi, une fille Yanomami »

« Ce deuxième volume de la série Amazon Rainforest Magic est aussi charmant et engageant que le premier. L’histoire continue le fil du livre précédent et les personnages semblent être de vieux amis. Meromi, une fille Yanomami maintenant âgée de 9 … Continue reading →

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The Hidden World of Fast Fashion! – Do You REALLY need that? — Rehabilitating Earth

By Toryn Whitehead The fashion industry is responsible for 10% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as consuming more energy than the aviation and shipping industry combined. If we want to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial … Continue reading →

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Fast Fashion: Convenience at a Cost! — Waste not, $pend not…

Please note that this post is not intended to shame anyone who buys or wears fast fashion. I do however, strongly encourage you to consider making a change! I won’t sugar coat it. Fast fashion is awful. Awful for the … Continue reading →

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Shamanic adventures – « Amazon Rainforest Magic The adventures of Meromi, a Yanomami girl » 

« This second volume of the Amazon Rainforest Magic series is a page-turner and as charming and delightful as the author’s first. The story line continues the thread from the previous book and the characters seem like old friends.  Meromi, a Yanomami girl … Continue reading →

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Britain Tells Its Big Game Hunters to Piss Off! Britons who Kill Endangered Animals abroad for Fun will not be able to bring their hunting trophies home! — Mother Jones

This story was originally published by the Guardian and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Britons who kill endangered animals abroad for fun will not be able to bring their hunting trophies home, the government has announced. The proposed law … Continue reading →

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The Bonfire of the (Advent) Vanities — Kassandra Komplex — Tiny Life

In case you’re a working adult, how often, come December 1, do you feel as if there was just too much time in your hands ahead of the Christmas holidays? That there are just too many unbooked slots in your … Continue reading →

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Una historia llena de sentido para niños y adultos – « La Magia de la Amazonia Las aventuras de Namowë, un niño Yanomami » 

« La Magia de la Amazonia describe el viaje de un niño Yanomami a través de la selva amazónica para encontrar una cura para su hermana enferma. Encuentra animales y plantas parlantes que lo ayudan. El cuento está escrito en la línea … Continue reading →

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2022: The year of eco-consumerism!  — #ActNow for a Sustainable future for humanity & the planet! — ACT NOW!

At the end of each year, as it is well known, the trends of the new year are written and listed. Similar lists have started to appear for 2022 regarding the ‘hype’ of the year,  845 more words 2022: The year … Continue reading →

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Cruelty should never become fashionable! Interfaith Coalition Urges Louis Vuitton To Shed Fur Items! — AMRAH

A group of Christian, Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish leaders is urging luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton to stop using animal fur in its clothing and other products. In a joint statement, Orthodox Christian priest Stephen Karcher, Hindu activist Rajan Zed, … Continue reading →

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Une histoire significative pour les enfants et les adultes –  « La Magie de l’Amazonie Les aventures de Namowë, un garçon Yanomami » 

La Magie de l’Amazonie décrit le voyage d’un garçon Yanomami à travers la forêt tropicale amazonienne pour trouver un remède pour sa sœur malade. Il rencontre des animaux et des plantes parlant qui l’aident. Le conte est écrit dans la … Continue reading →

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