“If the Navajo people and coal were to declare their relationship status on Facebook, they’d have to chose the ‘it’s complicated’ option.”  This is one of the lines on Jetsonorama’s blog about his newest street art project shining light on the major environmental impact of coal on the Navajo people.  “I informally interviewed 16 co-workers and asked them to share with me the first thing that comes to mind when i say “coal.”  Everyone I talked with was raised on the reservation.  They all identified coal as a cheap source of fuel, especially for the elders.  It’s readily available to all tribal members.  By way of comparison, a pick up truck full of wood costs $200.00.  That same pick up truck loaded with coal would cost only $60.00 and the coal would burn longer.”

The main point of the project is to shine light on the significant impact to the environment and to the health of people who burn coal in their homes.  “Mining operations on the reservation provide work for a small segment of the population who are able to realize a middle class lifestyle for their families.  However, the cost to the families who burn coal in their homes and to the environment is great.”

Through the use of a fresh faced Navajo baby and symbolic coal “cloud” over her head, with the words:

Jetsonorama get’s to the heart of the matter instantly.  Glued up on old train overpasses and abandoned houses and sheds with his signature wheat paste, we are able to see the message in a very beautiful way, that isn’t preaching, but rather speaking to us through art.

Personally I think it is beautiful and effective.  Hope you will look over the blog and see some of the other projects this amazing artist is working on.