Candescent on Flickr

In March of this year I travelled to Colombia for a month to research for The Candescent Project's forthcoming exhibition called Green Gold.

My trip had a 'thread of gold' running through it, from Cartagena, the former treasury of Colonial Spain, to Bogotá with its magnificent Gold Museum, Villa de Leiva & surrounds, home to the legend of 'El Dorado' and the Muisca Indians, and Medellin, where the offices of Oro Verde are based. Finally to Chocó, to visit the Oro Verde gold mines.

I have posted images of my trip on Flickr, and whilst writing this blog, I will highlight some of the images and the story behind them. I will also write about the creation of the piece of jewellery that is being made for the exhibition and update on the progress of the painting. It will be a tale of Colombia and my search for a beautiful, ethical piece of jewellery..

Here is a link to my images of Colombia on Flickr. © Tanya Bowd

Cordaid & CAFOD

The Green Gold exhibition has been made possible by the kind support of Cordaid and CAFOD.


Cordaid is a Dutch international development organisation structured around four programmes: Participation, Emergency Aid and Reconstruction, Health and Well-being and Entreprenuership.

CAFOD is the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, working with communities in over 50 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, supporting people to find their own solutions to poverty. The agency works with all people regardless of race, gender, religion or nationality, acting on principles of compassion, solidarity, stewardship and hope.

In 2008 CAFOD toured a photographic exhibition called 'Pure Gold?' which revealed a less than glamorous side to gold. It highlighted mining activities in three continents that have contibuted to a cycle of poverty and violence, where water supplies have been poisoned, and the environment and culture of people have been destroyed.

The exhibition Green Gold concentrates on the positive aspects of responsible, small-scale mining. By profiling the Oro Verde programme in Colombia, the exhibition serves to highlight the social and environmental benefits that responsible mining brings, and its application as a model for other small-scale mines around the world to adopt.

http://www.cordaid.com/

http://www.cafod.org.uk/

Respond! An RSA Arts & Ecology Initiative

The RSA Arts and Ecology Centre is an organisation whose role is to catalyse, publicise, challenge and support artists who are responding to the environmental challenges of our time. Respond! is an RSA Arts & Ecology Initiative held for the duration of June 09 to highlight nationwide events, exhibitions, talks and projects in the UK that demonstrate the arts’ engagement with environmental issues.

In London, The Candescent Project exhibition Green Gold is featured alongside events and exhibitions at various venues including the Barbican Centre, Natural History Museum and Cape Farewell.

www.rsaartsandecology.org.uk/projects/respond

Coutts London Jewellery Week

The Candescent Project exhibition is part of Coutts London Jewellery Week 8th- 14th June 09. Now in its second year, the week highlights the work of jewellers, both established and new, at various venues in London. This year there is a museum trail with the V&A, British Museum, Museum of London and Fashion & Textile Museum showcasing jewellery collections. The Green Gold exhibition will be on for the week's duration at the Art Workers Guild in Queens Square, Bloomsbury, London.

http://www.londonjewelleryweek.co.uk/

Art Workers Guild

The exhibition Green Gold is to be held at the Art Workers Guild, in Bloomsbury, London, which was established in 1884 by a group of young architects associated with the ideas of William Morrris and the Arts and Crafts Movement. The Guild is a society of artists, craftspeople and designers, with many of its current members upholding long-established traditions of workmanship and a desire to contribute to the community. The Guild's members range from animators to architects and mosaic artists to printmakers. There is a reference library and a large number of events are held, from lectures to exhibitions.

http://www.artworkersguild.org/

Ronald de Hommel

Ronald de Hommel is a freelance photojournalist and documentary photographer based in Paris, France. Recently he has worked mainly in Latin America and the Middle East. He is currently working on several worldwide projects, as well as on assignments for Dutch and international magazines and NGO's. Part of his work is represented by photo agency ANP Photo.

The Candescent Project 'Green Gold' will feature some of Ronald's photographs of the Oro Verde programme.

http://www.photofactory.nl/

Kike Arnal

Photographic portraits of Oro Verde miners by Kike Arnal will accompany the Green Gold exhibition. Kike is a still photographer and videographer whose work has appeared in The New York Times and Life magazine. Originally from Venezuela and now based in the San Francisco Bay area, Kike has covered stories in the Americas, the Middle East, Asia and Europe.

http://www.kikearnal.com/