Amazon

2021 
36 x 54in 
acrylic on masonite

This painting is based on an encounter we had with a family of Amazonian Giant River Otters, in the Peruvian Amazon in 2017.

We were paddling in an oxbow lake in a wooden dugout, and our presence alerted the creatures, who came out to meet whatever was intruding on their territory. I had erroneously assumed that, like their smaller cousins, this species was both curious and friendly, and so I stated mimicking the lead otter’s barks. This infuriated the otters, who now saw us as a threat to be dealt with on no uncertain terms. Our guide pointed out the danger we were now in and advised me to stop making the noise. 30 feet from the boat the otter was satisfied we were no threat, and retreated with the rest of the family into the impenetrable vegetation of the shoreline.

Giant Otters are over 6 feet long, and are apex predators in the watery realm they inhabit. They are also extremely rare and endangered. Indeed, more people have seen Jaguars than these magnificently adapted creatures. (Jaguars are also attacked by Amazonian Giant River Otters if they enter the water in otter territory). They also live in tightly knit family groups, led by a matriarch, hunting and defending cooperatively.

The otters for me, came to represent metaphorically the Amazon ecosystem, the matriarch a living embodiment of the mythical Amazon warrior women. The sheer size of the otters conveying the enormity of the Amazonian ecosystem, all of it nonetheless under threat from human activities such as illegal logging, gold mining, and land clearing. The incredible adaptations that has shaped this species for a life intimately tied to the waters of the Amazon speaks for the myriad biological connections of an Amazonian ecosystem that is in very real danger of being destroyed before we fully realize the complex intertwining of life that has evolved here. So too, the complex interplay of ripples on the surface, echoing the interplay of sunlight and water in the rainforest’s biological systems, giving rise to such an incredibly rich tapestry of life.

These otters are coming out to confront us, to force us to comprehend the incredible scale of the Amazon, its complexity, and the threats they and all they are connected to, face through our ignorance, hubris, and greed. Inaction is no longer an option.