We Thought It Was Gold (But It Was Blood) (2018) Site-specific Installation (spray paint, stencils)
This site-specific installation outside of the village of Megali Panagia (Halkidiki, Greece) takes its inspiration from the poem “We thought it was oil, But it was blood” by the Nigerian poet and environmental activist Nnimmo Bassey. Since 2012, the Canadian mining company Eldorado Gold has been constructing a massive open-pit gold mine in the Skouries-Kakkavos mountains, just behind the village of Megali Panagia. The construction of this mine, which is not yet operational, has resulted in the deforestation of millions of trees, the destruction and pollution of rivers and streams, and disruption and pollution of the aquifers which lie under the mountains and provide clean water to the surrounding villages. Police repression of community activism to oppose the mining project has been ongoing and violent. Villages are divided as a result of the economic conflict imposed by the mining company and their promise of employment. The company buses which transport workers from the village pass by this sign on the way to the mine. The before and after images attest to the nerve struck by the phrase “We thought it was gold, but it was blood”.
My gratitude extends to Silvia Federici, who brought my attention to Nnimmo Bassey’s original poem.
For more information: https://en.antigoldgr.org http://epitropiagonapanagias.blogspot.com https://www.somo.nl/fools-gold-eldorado-gold/