MARCUS FRADE

The *Legal Amazon* is a geographic area that covers about 59% of Brazil’s territory, encompassing nine states for the purposes of economic planning and regional integration. Created in 1953 by the federal government, its main objective is to promote the development and sustainability of the Amazon region through specific policies and incentives.

*Is it succeeding?*

The *igarapés* are small rivers or channels in the Amazon region, meaning “canoe path” in Tupi. Illegal mineral exploitation that occurs in these tributaries causes severe deforestation and significant socio-environmental impacts. This illicit activity devastates Indigenous Lands, such as those of the Kayapó, Munduruku, and Yanomami peoples, and brings no real benefit to local communities — quite the opposite — it degrades the biome and the home of countless living beings, harming Amazonian biodiversity. Mining destroys vast forest areas, and mercury, used in gold extraction, contaminates rivers and the food chain, ultimately affecting human health as well.

The artwork reflects the consequences of unrestrained exploitation. The misalignment between the canvas and its frame reveals the imbalance humankind has caused to the environment. In the pursuit of a single gold nugget, how much of true value ends up being lost?

The forest offers itself as home, as shelter, yet it is continuously exploited. And the law that should protect it remains passive before reality.

The Amazon cries out for help — its veins bleed with so much lost life.