AMAZONAS

an artist book

Collecting SOIL for his project of terragraphy, Ekkeland Goetze travelled 5000 miles by boat in the most powerful river system of the EARTH. In the largest rain forest area world-wide he encountered various ethnic groups and cultures. The EARTH has been collected following the course of the river Amazon, Rio Negro and its tributaries. Together with the people living by the river, EG selected sites with a spiritual, mythological, historical or practical meaning.

The French Jean-Philippe Beau-Douëzy was his guide during the 45 days expedition, during which they collected 51 SOIL samples.

The journey began in spring 2000 at the Ilha de Marajo, located in the Amazon delta, where 3000 years old fragments of ceramic have been unearthed, and ended at the Brazo Casiquiare in Venezuela. Starting at the mouth of Orinoco river, Alexander von Humboldt and the French Aimé Bonpland arrived at the same spot in spring 1800, proving that a natural connection existed between the Orinoco and Amazon.

The book contains all original terragraphics printed by the artist using SOIL from the Amazon. It also includes the portrait photographs, taken by EG, of the people who decided on the sites. 19 stories of the people living by the river were digitally recorded by EG on the spot, transcribed from the Portuguese and Spanish and translated into German and English. Passages from Ekkeland Götze's diary and a statement of Jean-Philippe Beau-Douëzy complete the book.

The book (25 x 19 x 4 cm, 384 pages) was designed by EG, the text is set in Helvetica Light. It is printed in offset printing on 90 g Fabriano Ingres paper. Each cover is painted by EG with the Amazonian EARTH.

The book is published in May 2001 in an edition of 250 Arabic and 25 Roman numbered copies. The title page bears the artist's signature.

250 EUR