
The mask by Néle Azevedo was ordered from the French government to celebrate the five years of COP21 and used by Sonia Guajajara, an indigenous leader.
Explanation: Indigenous people are the first protectors of the forest. They see themselves as the very extension of what they consider to be the earth-forest. Not a source of income but a breathing being gifted with a soul. I used laurel leaves picked in the wild. On these leaves I embroidered the names of indigenous ethnic groups that dwell in the forests of the lands which came to be called Brazil. I borrowed the laurel’s symbolism, originating in Greece, cradle of the western civilization. I embroidered the leaves with the names of the peoples who keep the forests standing and, in so doing, enable life on earth.
Handmade in 12/2020.
Handmade in 12/2020.