Pacific Cultures Flashcards
Jimmy Midjaw, Midjaw Three Dancers And Two Musicians: Corroboree Of Mimi, Spirits Of The Rocks, Minjilang (Croker Island), West Arnhem Land, Australia. Mid 20th century
dreaming central to belief system- dream time was before human beings- ancestral spirits emerged and created landforms, animals, people- therefore- rocks, mountains=sacred; corroborees- meetings to remember ancestral spirits and get close to them
Mimis- spirits who live in spaces b/w rocks, come out at night, taught humans to hunt, cook, dance, sing, play instruments
tall, thin, humanlike figures in motion- originally on rock shelters, in 20th century- painted on eucalyptus bark
Korambo (Haus Tambaran), Kinbangwa village, Sepik River, Papua New Guinea, Abelam, 20th century.
korambo=spirit house within hamlet, only for men; holds yam cult objects, symbol of clan identity, hidden from women and boys; ceremonies for each stage of construction held in early morning when women & boys asleep
inside- men organize rituals, initiation rites, conduct community business
Hamlet & prestige= quality of korambo & yam size
Frame of poles, triangular floor plan, roofed w/split cane/thatch- facade= woven mat at bottom, painted wooden lintel, painted bark panels w/face spirits
flying witch (female element) at top, topped by symbolic penis
entering & exiting= symbolic womb-death & re-birth, paint has magical qualities, ritually repainted; like Grizzly Bear partition in Pacific NW
Asmat Ancestral Spirit Poles (Bisj), Buepis village, Fajit River, West Papau Province, Indonesia. c. 1960
like mortuary totem poles in Pacific NW, spirits of deceased remain in village, erect memorial poles (bisj= “bish”) to embody spirit of ancestor & pay tribute, also helping newly dead find way to next life
made of wood, paint, palm leaves, fiber, approx. 18’
tree felled symbolically, attacked like enemy, figures carved- dead to be avenged- bent pose=praying mantis
carving + feast; relatives publicly state will avenge dead in headhunting raid, men in mock battles, women cheer
lacy phallus (root)= male fertility, decoration of body
face river to ensure dead travel to realm of ancestors like Vikings, Greeks, Egyptians
Malagan Display, Medina village, New Ireland, Papua New Guinea. c. 1930.
rites held by clan leaders for wife’s deceased family- months of training in seclusion, prepare elaborate, intricate dances, then presented to public, along with carved/painted figures representing ancestors; create special house to display sculptures of dead
this display honors 12 deceased of wife’s family, unveiled at climax of festivities
after ceremony, no longer ritually “active,” so destroyed, like Navajo sand painting
Wapepe Navigation Chart, Marshall Islands. 19th c.
stick charts (called wapepe or mattang)= map of land and paths between islands
made of sticks, coconut fibers, and shells- 29.5” X 29.5”
communicate to others how to navigate
schematic diagrams of prevailing ocean currents, wave patterns between islands
currents=sticks, shells=islands, sticks around shells=waves shaped by island deflecting prevailing winds
refracted waves= sense proximity of land w/o seeing it
Carved Figure From Storehouse Doorway, Ngati Paoa, Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand, 1500-1800
classic Polynesian style- made of wood; each region with own style; only stone tools- shallow cuts
male ancestor w/ hands on stomach, ancestor between legs
frontally facing, large head, wide open mouth, eyes wide open
Feather Cloak, Known As The Kearney Cloak, Hawaii. c. 1843
feathered cloak is emblem of high society, red & yellow feathers most prized because from rare bird, now extinct, each bird only 7-8 feathers, like quetzal bird of Aztecs; matching pairs of crescent fiber patterns w/ foundation of coconut fibers
also like Aztecs (quetzal bird headdresses) cloaks given as gifts to visitors
spiritual power imbued in wearer; specialists create cloaks while surrounded by protective objects and reciting chief’s genealogy
Moai Ancestor Figures, Ahu Nau Nau, Rapa Nui (Easter Island). c.? 1000-1500, restored 1978
largest stone sculptures in Polynesia, placed along coastlines on ahu (stone altar platforms)- 1000 of them-400 unfinished- up to 65’ high; memorials to chiefs or ancestors
compare to Olmec heads in Mesoamerica but much larger; sculpture removed from quarry by harder stone tools that pound away at stone (like Egyptian obelisks)
when removed- “walked” with ropes, handlers rocked side to side, many did not make journey to coast
restored: red scoria for topknots of hair, eyes- white coral & stone
Polynesian style: frontal facing, large eyes, prominent brow, long, pointed nose, small mouth, pursed lips, angular chin, long ear ornaments, hands at sides
Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri, Man’s Love Story, 1978.
“Dot painting” common in Australian desert areas- explains structure of universe, depict only what non-initiates know; red, yellow, ochre, blue- but modern materials- synthetic polymer paint on canvas
Narrative- 2 mythical ancestors; white U- seated in front of water hole w/ ant’s nest, digging stick to right, white leaves to left; white “journey line”- comes from West
Brown U- from East- footprints; water hole; spin a hair string on spindle; distracted by woman loved (cannot marry); she approaches lost all work
4 Us- women came at night, guard lovers
Like pointillism but does not blend from distance; like Navajo sand paintings, canvas on floor
Shigeyuki Kihara, Ulugali’i Samoa: Samoan Couple, 2004-2005
contemporary New Zealander artist who is Third Gender (transgender woman), exposes colonial prejudices- photographer interested in postcolonialism, gender roles, cultural identity
re-appropriates colonial “documentary” photographs that promoted sexualized women (“dusky maidens”) and emasculated males (“noble savages”)
sepia-toned photographs, challenge gender roles
couple wearing traditional Samoan bark cloth, holding plaited fan & fly whisk- actually superimposed face of artist on both
