JUNGLE DIARY - BELIZE - 17.02.98
Over the next few weeks I'll be sharing exerpts from my jungle diary, exactly 23 years on from the day I made the entry.
My role as Expedition Artist for Raleigh International was to visually document the expedition across the nine project sites in this incredible country, including school building, bridge making, biodiversity monitoring and mountain climbing.
Tarp painted with venturers, Alton Ha Mayan Runs, Belize City
I was both excited and daunted by the task ahead, especially having been told at school, 'Natalie has no future in art'. I knew I could draw, but I needed to overcome my fear of drawing from life and of people looking over my shoulder. I decided the best training ground was the London underground and for a few days whizzed around the circle line. Nobody sat still for long, so I'd start with a punk rocker head, then maybe an old lady's body and then the ankles and feet of a workman. Two weeks before Ieft, I started seeing this guy I'd met at a Spanish evening. I really liked him, his name was @Richard Ganpatsingh and I wondered if I'd ever see him again...
"11am landed in Belize City - Blasted with incredible heat and humidity. Felt very happy and emotional. 20 minute bus ride to Field Base. Big wooden building. Sandwiches and induction. Very exciting projects which I'll elaborate on later. Nobody knew I was coming. There's a guitar here. I hope somebody plays it. We've got 13 days before the venturers arrive. Bloody hell I'm tired. Very interesting talk on Belize last night, such ethnic and environmental diversity.
Just been told people die on Raleigh. The medics have 6 bodybags.
Army Health Officer presentation - Just been shown slide about dangerous creatures...loads of leeches, Fer-de-lance snake who'll bite you 4-5 times per second, white lipped peccary sort of pig that goes around in gangs of 10 - 40, boas, scorpians, something about a bloke losing his nose, tarantulas, Atlantic coral snake whose venom is so toxic you'll have 20 minutes to live, botflies who'll lay eggs in your wounds which heal over and then..."
Chair at WMC; The Working Men's College - Inspiring learning since 1854
4 年Was there in 92 so will be fascinating to read this
stone sculptor
4 年I’ll enjoy reading these. I spent a marvellous 6 months in Belize about 15 years before you. An extraordinary country ! Didn’t do much sketching though, I’m ashamed to say.
"Economically Inactive" Thinker, Writer and Investor at Retired
4 年"Natalie has no future in art". A salutary lesson in taking responsibility for what we casually say - the world would have been a poorer place if you'd listened to them! Thanks for proving them wrong and bringing so much creativity to all you have done in the decades since! Oh, and watch that Richard Ganpatsingh, he's a keeper!
Director, Nature Nurture CIC
4 年Hey Geoffrey McMullan BEM, MSc I'll be sharing my sketch of our drive to Wildtracks on 19.03.98