This morning, I was browsing around the Southproject site, looking for news of the upcoming gathering in Johannesburg later this year, and learned although they are still working on it, it will be in October, which is good enough for the time being. After Santiago last year I would love to go so will try.

Anyway I followed this link Earthmarks – exhibition by Jeanette Unite and found fabulous glass, paper and paint works expressing her passionate interest in the industry of mining in her country, which of course is massive and produces a lot of wealth for South Africa. Mining is exploitation of the earth’s mineral resources… a two-sided coin, it brings wealth, but can leave costly problems if, as in the past of countries with long mining histories there was little attention paid to rehabilitation following exploitation. I think Jeannette’s Earthscars is a gloriously emotive term, and wish I’d thought of it.

Here in Uruguay there is little mining, because there has been little systemmatic modern exploration for minerals. And yet knowing how this continent and western Africa were once joined along the coast placing Uruguay’s coast neatly fitting that of the minerals rich area of Namibia, it makes sense that serious searches here will eventually discover viable mineral resources. Historically the spanish, french and british through small mines and long outdated technology did produce some copper, silver and gold, but today there is just one modern gold mine in the central north between Tacuarembo and Rivera; and beautiful amethysts and agates come from the northern province of Artigas. Fabulous marble and granite is found here, and was quarried until recent times, but the finishing costs became too high, and the industry has subsided. Many older buildings around Montevideo and the country are fitted with simply beautiful Uruguayan stone from yesteryear; today marble and granite are still widely used in modern homes and offices, but the stone comes in from Brazil, much cheaper.