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.

Bangka Slow Loris Nycticebus bancanus — Palm Oil Detectives

This species was last reported from the wild in 1937. If the Bangka Slow Loris is still alive then the burning of their habitat and conversion to agriculture (especially palm oil plantations) is their greatest threat. Pint-sized and cute primate … 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 » – Pour les 8 à 12 à 100 ans ! – écrit et illustré par Barbara Crane Navarro – MAINTENANT sur KINDLE AUSSI !

« 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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Amazon River Dolphin Inia geoffrensis — Palm Oil Detectives

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

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A Meaningful Story for Children and Adults – « Amazon Rainforest Magic, The adventures of Namowë, a Yanomami boy » – For ages 8 to 12 to 100!  – written and illustrated by Barbara Crane Navarro – NOW ON KINDLE, TOO!

« Amazon Rainforest Magic describes the journey of a Yanomami boy through the Amazon rainforest to find a cure for his sick baby sister. He encounters talking animals and plants who help him. The book is written in the vein of “The … Continue reading

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The fantastic anatomy of spiders – all you have to know! — msamba

This video is about the fascinating and fantastic anatomy of spiders by means of a vivid 3D animation of a black widow. It is about the external structure with cephalothorax / prosoma and abdomen, chelicerae, pedipals and about the organs … Continue reading

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Una fábula con un mensaje – « La Magia de la Amazonia Las aventuras de Namowë, un niño Yanomami » – ¡Para edades de 8 a 12 a 100 años! – escrito e ilustrado por Barbara Crane Navarro – ¡AHORA TAMBIÉN en KINDLE!

« La Magia de la Amazonia nos lleva a un mundo que podría parecer fantástico, donde humanos, animales y plantas hablan entre sí, bromean y conspiran entre sí. Lo obvio es que los humanos no están por encima de otras criaturas. … Continue reading

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What Makes a Family: Childbearing in the Climate Crisis — UAlberta Sustain SU – Sustainability Blog

I first read that not having children is the best thing you can do for climate change in David Collings’ Stolen Future, Broken Present: The Human Significance of Climate Change:  “The implications are unmistakable: a person who wishes to forestall … Continue reading

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Une fable avec un message: « La Magie de l’Amazonie, Les aventures de Namowë, un garçon Yanomami » – Pour les 8 à 12 à 100 ans! – écrit et illustré par Barbara Crane Navarro – MAINTENANT sur KINDLE AUSSI !

« La Magie de l’Amazonie nous fait pénétrer dans un monde qui pourrait sembler fantastique, où les êtres humains, les animaux et les plantes se parlent, plaisantent, conspirent entre eux. La chose évidente est que les humains ne sont pas au-dessus … Continue reading

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Your Best Friend’s Poop Is Harmful to Nature! — Mother JonesYour Best Friend’s Poop Is Harmful to Nature! — Mother Jones

This story was originally published by the Guardian and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Dog feces and urine are being deposited in nature reserves in such quantities that it is likely to be damaging wildlife, according to a new … Continue reading

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A Fable with a Message –  « Amazon Rainforest Magic The adventures of Namowë, a Yanomami boy » – For ages 8 to 12 to 100!  – written and illustrated by Barbara Crane Navarro – NOW ON KINDLE, TOO!

« Amazon Rainforest Magic presents a world that at first might seem whimsical, where people, animals, and plants joke, conspire, and argue with each other. The serious point is that humans are no more important than any of the other creatures … Continue reading

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