On the outskirts of our invaluable campus, lays a little (rather large, actually) gem, dedicated to the indigenous First Nations community—the famous Museum of Anthropology. Lined up with asymmetrical wooden structures and mirages of totem poles and carvings, to me, it quickly became the most pleasant atmosphere UBC had to offer. With the glistening water and the greenery presented outside the large windows of the museum, the effortlessness lay a comforting foundation before entering the Amazonia exhibit enriched with artifacts and actualities of the people and earth inhabiting the Amazon. The dim lit room and subtle sounds and chants of the Amazonian people through the muted speakers in the exhibit, created an ambiance that truly made me feel a part of their environment. The tacit sense of awe on everyone’s face spoke through the silence and quiet chatters.
This was the first time in university where I had seen this abundance of silent reverence, and I was hooked.
As with everyone else, I walked around the curation created by Nuno Porto, and was able to appreciate the handcrafted tools and clothing of the tribes displayed. Through the various feather-ridden headdresses, hunting tools, and festival outfits, their culture came to life. The combination of information and artifacts brought a sense of understanding and construction to the Amazonian lifestyle. Naturally, being someone who yearns for art and expression through media, I was dumbfounded when my eye caught the little latex statuettes—The Balata Figures. I automatically made a connection to my childhood, Saturday morning art lessons with my Russian art teacher, making small clay horse sculptures and puppets, and the hard work and craftsmanship associated with it.
The Balata Figures are essentially extractions of latex from trees deep in the Amazonian forests; the collection and processing of materials takes months on end. This dedication to an age-old ‘toy’ and trading tool baffled me. Shaped into various animals, and hand painted through the extracts of other plants required commitment that is often overlooked. Just like art in our contemporary world, not everything is understood as are these figurines. But more than just a form of artistic appreciation, what hooked me to their significance was their economic importance in the Brazilian and Amazonian culture. The balata figures float down the river and were historically important to the rubber boom between 1879 and 1912, and continue to marginalize 40% of exporting profit.
Like various other artifacts present, the tradition and streamlined aim to feed other cultures the same: the collecting, processing, and cooking of these figures involves a great cultural association, and I was able to make connections to the action figurines in our contemporary childhood, the ancient Indian art my family grew up around, as well as the Russian horses and puppets- my art teacher imposed upon me.
As I stay dumbstruck, I find it rather humbling to see the closeness to nature and tradition, and I have gained more respect and knowledge for a form of expression I had already loved.