I realised that I have never put up my mixed media artworks from my land art project on my webpage…
So let me share some of the works and the thoughts behind them with you today!
This artwork is called ‘What will be left’
All currently awarded mining licences were cut out from a tourist map, to make the actual impact visible. Not all licenses will be used immediately or at all, but companies would not pay for such licenses if they did not have the intention of using it sooner or later. Also many of the areas are awarded more than once, for instance for diamonds and for nuclear fuels at the same time.
(This information can be found on the webpage of the Ministry of Mines & Energy of Namibia).
Open Pit Near You
Photo of the Namib Desert, acrylic, cardboard (Recycled), wood glue
14,7 x 19,7 x 1,7cm
From photographs which I took of the Namib desert I cut out an ‘open-pit mine’.
Concessions Areas 2
Digitally manipulated photo of the Namib Desert
Digital print on photo paper
15 x 20cm
Numbered Edition
Concessions Areas 1
Digitally manipulated photo of the Namib Desert
Digital print on photo paper
15 x 20cm
Numbered Edition
Most of the Namib desert is sliced up into different concession areas for mining purposes, awarded by the government to interested parties, very often foreign companies. Once again I used my photographs and imagined what it would look like, if we could see these areas while we are in the desert.
Repeating History
(Maharero & Leutwein)
Ball-point pen on magazine image
27,5 x 43cm
There is a pretty famous old photograph of the Herero Chief Samuel Maharero and Governor Leutwein. Samuel Maharero has sold off much of the land of his people to the Germans for very cheap in return for being helped to fight the Herero people who did not accept him as chief.
I used this photograph as a reference and drew the people into a modern-day setting (an interior from a magazine) as I imagine similar dubious and far-reaching deals are happening still today, especially in awarding mining concessions.
The problem with selling off our countries resources in such a big way, is that we will never be able to get them back. Once they are depleted, they are gone forever and we are left with big scars in the earth and probably a lot of pollution.
Fata Morgana Welwitschia
Acrylic and pencil on canvas
15 x 20cm
Or: Not everything that shines is gold…
I guess only Namibians will understand this work immediately. The Welwitschia is a unique plant found in the Namib desert. An abstract representation has been used as decoration for the statehouse’s fence. The golden Welwitschia decoration is made by North-Koreans and it is not cast in metal, but in plastic. The statehouse has been the source of much dispute, since it was build mostly by foreigners and at a huge cost to the nation. The lavishness and pomp and huge expense feels like a laugh in the face of all the Namibian people who are living in real poverty with no roofs over their head.
Also, the Welwitschia is a special ancient, protected plant found in the desert and just like the minerals, metals and nuclear fuels which can be found here, I feel that our government would sell it off to some foreign investor without further thought, if they were offered the faintest promise of getting rich quick.
If you would like to see some more works from this project, please visit this LINK.
Imke Rust 
Sadly, the rape and destruction of our planet seems like it will never abate. I, personally, will never understand how money becomes more important than anything else. I suspect that the ignorance is twofold: 1. people are just trying to survive on a day-to-day basis that they can’t even think or spend time to find out about things such as this and 2. ignorance is bliss and by that I mean, there are so many problems sometimes it is easier to keep your head buried, eyes closed, and ears shut. It becomes overwhelming and seems like we can’t change it anyway, so why bother.
Thankfully there are artists! Without artists like you secrets would forever remain.
Yes, you are right, Indigo Spider. I would also add a third thing, which is linked to ‘ignorance is bliss’: I think we often feel so helpless and small and not able to make a difference. So instead we rather ignore many things or stay unconscious and keep ourselves occupied with watching TV or something…
But sooner or later we need to wake up. And realise that we have the power in us to make a difference.
I hope that my art can help us to wake up, not with fear but with determination and courage.
interesting, public do not know evering is secret…. bad secrets…..thanks for sharing
in your creativ way
Yes, there are many secrets, but just as much ignorance and a lack of caring about it, unfortunately. For example, the information about the awarded mining licences that the tourist map work is based on, is freely available to the public in the internet. But few people would go and find out more about it.
The Map with the cut-out parts was a real eye-opener for almost all exhibition goers. Even pro-mining people realised that it is a fatal situation, when mining concessions are not given out slowly over time, but all at once.
Sometimes art and creativity can make us understand the world better and faster 🙂