Vilma Bader

“The dynamic, multisensory realm of the forest is differentiated by emotions of euphoria, sadness, and nostalgia. Within its bounds, one can hear human and more-than-human sounds of walking, eating, singing, and pounding sago. But this becomes drowned out by noise, indexing the point where time stops and oil palm exploitation begins”. This visceral description of environmental anthropologist Dr Chao is the everyday reality of the Marind, a people caught in the throes of a struggle against oil palm expansion and exploitation. The ubiquitous bamboo has become a symbol of their resistance movement. The Marind, The Bamboo and The Struggle consists of 15 prints mounted on foam board reiterating this struggle. A mighty bamboo shoot of a soaring 4 metres high stands as sentinel next to this list of reiteration.