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.

« La seule raison pour laquelle la forêt ne se transforme pas encore en chaos, c’est que quelques grands chamans font encore danser leurs puissants esprits pour la protéger »

« Les esprits xapiri du chaman écrasent avec colère les avions des chercheurs d’or dans la forêt. C’est vrai! Cela s’est produit lorsqu’un très grand chaman est mort du paludisme propagé par des mineurs d’or. Plusieurs avions de chercheurs d’or … Continue reading →

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#DIADOÍNDIO? — Mágica Mistura✨

Por Bruno Kanela É preciso entender as lutas do nosso tempo. Incansavelmente, os povos indígenas do Brasil têm ocupado as redes sociais e os espaços de debate neste mês para reafirmar que desde a colonização não existe uma data a … Continue reading →

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It is difficult to talk about the Amazonia without using colors – Evna Moura — Art & Culture Inside

‘I believe that my work wouldn’t even exist without culture. Much in part because of the reference to the place where I was born and the cultural influence that this brought me. Like the materiality I seek, the traces, the … Continue reading →

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« The only reason the forest does not yet turn to chaos is that a few great shamans are still making their powerful spirits dance to protect it »

Originally posted on Barbara Crane Navarro:
https://barbara-navarro.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/un-chaman-yanomami-invoquant-les-esprits-hekura-pour-empecc82cher-les-intrus-de-decc81truire-la-forecc82t-1.jpeg A Yanomami shaman summoning the spirits to prevent intruders from destroying the forest – drawing on paper: Wacayowë Yanomami ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? https://barbara-navarro.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/aa-2-helicopter-arrow-wacayowe-6.jpg A Yanomami shaman…

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« In assenza del sacro, tutto è in vendita. »

« L’ambiente non è qui. L’ambiente non c’è. Tu sei l’ambiente. » « Quelle che chiamate le vostre risorse naturali, la nostra gente chiama i nostri genitori. » – Oren Lyons, nazione Seneca Dobbiamo adorare di nuovo la foresta, fiumi, … Continue reading →

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Vontades…por Fernando Pessoa — Mágica Mistura✨

“Deus quer, o homem sonha, a obra nasce.” Fernando Pessoa imagens do WordPress Vontades…por Fernando Pessoa — Mágica Mistura✨

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Ponto de vista…por Tolstói — Mágica Mistura✨

“Há quem passe por um bosque e só veja lenha para a fogueira.” Leon Tolstói imagens do WordPress Ponto de vista…por Tolstói — Mágica Mistura✨

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« A falta de lo sagrado, todo está a la venta. »

« El medio ambiente no está aquí. El medio ambiente no está ahí. Eres el medio ambiente. » « Lo que ustedes llaman sus recursos naturales, nuestra gente llama a nuestros padres. » – Oren Lyons, nación Séneca Debemos adorar … Continue reading →

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Montanhas…🏞️ — Mágica Mistura

Que grande espetáculo Já de longe dá pra ver O cume lá entre as nuvens Quase encostando no céu Montanhas são o que há De lindo, majestoso, 95 more words Montanhas…🏞️ — Mágica Mistura

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« Na ausência do sagrado, tudo está à venda. »

« O ambiente não é aqui. O ambiente não está ali. Você é o meio ambiente. » « O que você chama de seus recursos naturais, nosso povo chama nossos pais. » – Oren Lyons, nação Seneca Devemos adorar a floresta, rios, céu … Continue reading →

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