Title: The Crying Forest
Dimension: Variable Dimensions
Year: 2016
Back to 2016, in a gesture to draw attention to the massive deforestation ravaging the Amazon rainforest, French photographer and street artist Philippe Echaroux projected the faces of indigenous Brazilians onto the forest’s trees. The projected images demonstrate the deep connection between the rainforest and its inhabitants, acknowledging the need for the preservation of their home and resources.
The photographs focus on the Suruí tribe of Brazil which is led by Chief Almir Surui Narayamoga and was asked by the Brazilian government to help replant their section of the rainforest in order to ensure and protect its longevity. Echaroux was invited by Chief Narayamoga to bring attention to the issue, which he highlighted through his projections.
While staying with the indigenous Suruí tribe in Brazil, Echaroux photographed the local people and projected their images up onto the rainforest canopy at night creating staggeringly beautiful images in the trees.
While staying with the indigenous Suruí tribe in Brazil, Echaroux photographed the local people and projected their images up onto the rainforest canopy at night creating staggeringly beautiful images in the trees. The idea behind the project was highlighting the deep connection between the rainforest and the people that live there. Their existence relies on the forest, so it stresses the importance of preserving the region.
Enlarged and carefully projected over the trees of the forest to create what appears as a seamless composition, the pensive faces of the Surui, shot over the course of a week by Echaroux, beautifully display the harmonious relationship they enjoy with their habitat. The work is a confronting visual, one that forces the viewer to consider the Amazon as more than just a site of valuable resources. Part of a conservation campaign envisioned by the photographer and named Street Art 2.0, ‘The Crying Forest’ is likely just the beginning of an ongoing artistic commentary on humanity’s’ relationship with the earth.
“When I got in contact with the Surui tribe I promised them one thing,” Echaroux explains. “I wanted to illustrate that when we cut down a tree it’s like putting a man down, when we see the connection between these people and the forest, this really is the evidence.”
Photographs from this series was exhibited in the exhibition “The Crying Forest” at Galerie Taglialatella in Paris during November 11 to December 15, 2016. You can see more of Echaroux’s work on his website and Facebook, as well as a behind-the-scenes making of his work (in French) below.
Resource: Philippe Echaroux, PetaPixel, Design Indaba, Colossal
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