Chinese Giant Salamander + Hawaiian Monk Seal

Tree Nymph- Mask Final Illustration

Tree Nymph Mask

Les Ramoneurs de Menhirs band poster

Les Ramoneurs de Menhirs Poster Sketch

I'm going to mess around with the text and the placement of the hand, as well as the colors.

Conversation with the Earth- Forest Spirit

Environment- Gurani People and Deforestation

On the southeast coast of Brazil there is the Guaraqueaba Forest, where three American companies have ‘purchased’ a forest as a way to offset their carbon footprints. Basically, they are promising not to cut down these trees, in a rather stupid concept called ‘avoided deforestation’. They are not fighting their carbon footprint by adding more trees or reducing it. They are buying forests with trees that have already absorbed a certain amount of carbon- it’s not like the trees are actively absorbing the carbon as the companies are releasing. They don’t own the land- they just pay, promise not to cut down any of the trees, and receive ‘carbon credit’, which the entire process is not allowed in many developed nations, which signed the Kyoto

Anyway, there are people who live in this forest. They are the Gurani people. They may not have any land rights but they have lived there for generations and have lived off the island: hunting, fishing, harvesting, farming, etc. But now that their land is ‘protected’ they are having a hard time getting by. A group called the Forca Verde (Green Police) arrest, and prosecute when the Gurani people do what they’ve been doing for centuries: cutting down the local Palmetto trees to live off of. The Green Police ignore all the people who are cutting the trees down illegally for the illicit food market. They are taking bribes from the big American companies to prosecute the local residents, to dissuade them from fighting back since it brings the government a good chunk of money.

I did some more research on the Guaraní people. There is a lot of mythology in their culture, and I was struck by one line from the photo essay: “all the indigenous wisdom comes from the forest”. I began thinking about some sort of Mother Nature-esque spirit watching over the Guaraní people and seeing all the problems that is happening to her forest, sort of an almost Grandmother Willow from Pocahontas type spirit.

I’m going to do collage again- a series of three images focusing on the Forest Spirit’s and its reaction to the whole ‘avoided deforestation’ business.

LIVELIHOOD CRISIS CONDITION MITIGATION IMPACT ECOSYSTEMS CULTURAL EFFECTS

Fishing,Hunting, Carbon market,REDD, Rainforest, Disrupted ceremony,

http://www.conversationsearth.org/index.php?temp=media&id_story=13

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2009/11/gms-money-trees

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaran%C3%AD_people

Mary Antisarlook- Reindeer Queen

Mary Antisarlook- Reindeer Queen

Reindeer Queen

The woman I picked from my amazing owl hat was Mary Antisarlook, born Changunak, or the Reindeer Queen. She was born in St. Michael, Alaska, in either 1870. Her mother was an Eskimo and her father was a Russian trader living in Alaska. Because of this, she could speak three languages: her mother’s native Inupiaq, her father’s native Russian, and English. In 1889, she married Charlie Antisarlook and moved to Cape Nome, Alaska. There, she and her husband worked as translators for a US vessel used to transport reindeer from Siberia to Alaska. Eventually, Mary and her husband were given their own small herd of reindeer. They were some of the first Natives to have their own herd.

Their herd thrived and grew to large numbers. In 1900, Charlie died. As both a Native and a woman, Mary should not have been able to keep any of her husband’s property, including their reindeer herd. She fought hard and won the right to half of the herd.  Over the years, the herd grew stronger and Mary herself grew rich through her herd. In 1902, she remarried and began training other Inupiaq men as herders.  She never had any children of her own, but adopted several, who all grew up to take care of their own herds.

Mary was a strong and independent woman, and was a key contributor to the reintroduction of reindeer into Alaska. With her love and dedication to the reindeer, she rightly received the nickname Reindeer Queen. Mary passed away in 1948, leaving behind numerous children and grandchildren to carry on the tradition of reindeer herding.

Research on Inuit Art

The Inuit art is based around their way of life, with focus on traditional myths and beliefs, and the animals of the artic. Their art reveals more about their life: the pursuit of food, their closeness to nature and animals, and the every day tasks they consider simple.

The artworks I found were brightly colored, with patterns within the different colors.  I was really interested in the colors and patterns incorporated into the art, as well as the constant association with nature. I want to use collage for this project, going back in with colored pencil or marker to give the paper the patterns found in Inuit art.

Sketch

Color Study

The Gilles Scratchboard

Belgium-Inspired Sketch

I picked the Belgian illustrator Jan Van Der Veken to draw inspiration from, as well as Belgium's traditional Mardi Gras celebration of the Carnival of Brinche, and the principal character of the Gilles.

Happy Family Final

Happy Side-Show Freaks Family- Sketches- Acacia Matheson

Father (strong man)- Son (sword swallower)- Mom (painted lady (tattoos))
Grandpa (fire breather)- Grandma (fortune teller)- Daughter (contortionist)