0134484592 ch28

Copyright © 2018, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Art History
Sixth Edition
Chapter 28
Art and Pacific Cultures

Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
28.a Identify the visual hallmarks of the art of Pacific cultures for formal,
technical, and expressive qualities.
28.b Interpret the meaning of works of art of Pacific cultures based on
their themes, subjects, and symbols.
28.c Relate artists and art of Pacific cultures to their cultural, economic,
and political contexts.

Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
28.d Apply the vocabulary and concepts relevant to the art, artists, and
art history of Pacific cultures.
28.e Interpret the art of Pacific cultures using the art historical methods of
observation, comparison, and inductive reasoning.
28.f Select visual and textual evidence in various media to support an
argument or an interpretation of the art of Pacific cultures.

THE BARUNGA STATEMENT
Various artists from Arnhem Land and central Australia. 1988. Ochers on composition
board with collage of printed text on paper, 48" × 47-1/4" (122 × 120 cm).
Reproduced with permission of the Northern and Central Land Councils. Reproduced
with the permission of the Northern and Central Land Councils. Gifts Collection, courtesy
of Parliament House Art Collection, Canberra ACT. [Fig. 28-01]

The Peopling of the Pacific (1 of 2)
• Europeans in the late eighteenth century noted the areas of Australia,
Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia as comprising Oceana.
• Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea originally formed a single
continent.
– The Torres Strait separated New Guinea from Australia by around
4000 BCE.

PACIFIC CULTURAL-GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS
The Pacific cultures are spread over four vast areas: Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia,
and Polynesia. [Map 28-01]

The Peopling of the Pacific (2 of 2)
• The Lapita people of Melanesia were farmers and fisherfolk.
– Their distinctive ceramics included geometric as well as figurative
designs.
– The representation of a human face on then next slide is one of
the earliest depictions of a human being in Oceanic art.
• Polynesian culture emerged in the eastern Lapita regions.

FRAGMENTS OF A LARGE LAPITA JAR
From Venumbo Reef, Santa Cruz Island, Solomon Islands. c. 1200–1100 BCE.
Clay, height of human face motif approx. 1-1/2" (4 cm).
Courtesy of the Anthropology Photographic Archive, Department of Anthropology, The
University of Auckland. [Fig. 28-02]

Australia (1 of 2)
• Life in indigenous Australia is connected to the concept of the
Dreamtime, or Dreaming, referring to a period before humans existed.
– Ancestral Beings brought about the existence of humans and
created the Aboriginal Laws.
– An outsider's understanding is limited to what is allowed to be
made public.

Australia (2 of 2)
• The power of the ancestral Spirit Beings is still thought to exist in
indigenous Australia.
• Artist Jimmy Midjaw Midjaw depicts a meeting held by a group of Mimi
spirits who teach humans to sing, dance, and hunt and cook animals.
– It is a monochromatic bark painting typical of northern Australia.

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.
Natural pigments on eucalyptus bark, 23" × 35" (59 × 89 cm).
Musée du Quai Branly, Paris, France. (MNAO 64.9.103). Photo © RMN-Grand Palais
(musée du quai Branly)/Jean-Gilles Berizzi. [Fig. 28-03]

Melanesia and Micronesia
• Social position in Melanesia relied on wealth and demonstration of
leadership.
• Rituals facilitate relationships with the deceased and supernatural
forces.
• Men's roles involve sculptural and mask traditions, while women's
roles involve making bark cloth, woven baskets, and ceramics.

New Guinea (1 of 4)
• New Guinea is the second-largest island in the world.
• Today, New Guinea is divided into Papua New Guinea (east) and West
Papua (a province of Indonesia).
• The population is highly diverse and includes over 700 identified
spoken languages.

New Guinea (2 of 4)
• The Korambo or Ceremonial House of the Abelam of Papua New
Guinea
– This structure is reserved for the men of the village and is a place
of organizing rituals and business.
– In the example, the projecting pole at the top is the only phallic
(male) element of the structure.
– Stages of completion are celebrated.

EXTERIOR OF KORAMBO (HAUS TAMBARAN)
Kinbangwa village, Sepik River, Papua New Guinea.
Abelam, 20th century. Mandeville Special Collections Library Geisel Library, University of
California, San Diego. Photo: Anthony Forge, 1962. [Fig. 28-04]

New Guinea (3 of 4)
• Bilum—Contemporary Net Bags of Highland New Guinea
– Bilum are rich metaphorical symbols, even synonyms for womb
and bride among women of the Waghi tribe.
– They can carry items from vegetables to babies to bones of the
deceased.
– Contemporary fibers have made their way into the complicated
patterns.

WOMEN WEARING NET BAGS (BILUM)
Wahgi Valley, Western Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea.
1990.
Michael O'Hanlon. [Fig. 28-05]

New Guinea (4 of 4)
• Spirit Poles of the Asmat of West Papua
– Trees are identified as human bodies; their fruit, as heads, and
birds are depicted as headhunters.
– Memorial poles known as bisj were sculpted and preserved in the
village.
 By carving poles, relatives indicated their responsibility to
avenge the dead in a headhunting raid.

ASMAT ANCESTRAL SPIRIT POLES (BISJ)
Buepis village, Fajit River, West Papua Province, Indonesia. c. 1960.
Wood, paint, palm leaves, and fiber, height approx. 18' (5.48 m).
© 2016. Image copyright The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art Resource, NY. [Fig. 28-06]

New Ireland and New Britain (1 of 5)
• Malagan Display of New Ireland
– The malagan rites honor death and initiate young men and women
into adulthood.
– Elaborately carved and painted sculptures are created for a
display house for the deceased person.
 After ceremonies, these sculptures are destroyed or sold to
outsiders, as they are no longer considered "active."

MALAGAN DISPLAY
Medina village, New Ireland, Papua New Guinea. c. 1930.
Height 6'10-5/8" (2.1 m), width 11'5-3/4" (3.5 m).
Museum für Völkerkunde, Basel, Switzerland. © Museum der Kulturen, Basel,
Switzerland. Photo: Peter Horner 1978. All rights reserved. [Fig. 28-07]

• Tubuan Mask of New Britain
– Tubuan masks represent the Tolai male secret society.
 The society's main purpose is to call up spirits representing the
masks; in the past, these spirits had the power of life and desk.
– Tubuan Mask represents a mother who metaphorically protects
her children (the initiatives).

TUBUAN MASK BEING DANCED
Tolai people, Duke of York Islands, New Britain, Papua New Guinea. c. 1990.
Cloth, paint, fiber, and feathers.
Photo: Caroline Yacoe. [Fig. 28-08]

• Micronesia
– Several islands in Micronesia are volcanic in origin, and the atolls
have a limited range of creating materials of any kind.
– Micronesians are known for fine canoes, textiles, and abstract
human figures.
– Tattooing and performative arts are also central to life.

• Wapepe Navigation Chart
– Until the 1950s, stick charts were schematic diagrams of
prevailing ocean currents and wave patterns created by islands.
– Although they are primarily functional, their clear, simple, and
abstract combination has an aesthetic impact.

WAPEPE NAVIGATION CHART
Marshall Islands. 19th century.
Sticks, coconut fiber, and shells, 29-1/2" × 29-1/2" (75 × 75 cm).
Peabody Essex Museum, Salem. Courtesy Peabody Essex Museum. Photo: Jeffrey
Dykes. [Fig. 28-09]

• Nan Madol
– Nan Madol was an administrative and ceremonial center for
powerful kings and consists of 92 artificial islands within a network
of about 170 acres.
– Walls of the Royal Mortuary Compound rise to 25 tall.
– Stone logs were split from the cliffs by heating and dousing the
stone in alternation.

THE COMPLEX OF NAN MADOL
Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. c. 1200/1300–c. 1500/1600.
[Fig. Map 28-02]

ROYAL MORTUARY COMPOUND, NAN MADOL
Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia.
Basalt blocks, wall height up to 25' (7.62 m).
© Stephen Alvarez/ National Geographic/Getty Images. [Fig. 28-10]

Polynesia
• Genealogy determined a person's place in society.
– It was thought that first-born children of hereditary elite inherited
more mana at birth and were more sacred.
• Creation of any art was a sacred act.
• Religions included many levels of gods who were influential in daily
life.

Te-Hau-ki-Turanga (1 of 3)
• Te-Hau-ki-Turanga is the oldest existing, fully decorated meeting
house in New Zealand.
• It was a memorial for master carver Raharuhi Rukupo's brother.
• The house symbolizes the tribe's founding ancestor, with a ridgepole
for a background and enfolding arms; ancestors "support" the house.

Raharuhi Rukupo, master carver TE-HAU-KI-TURANGA (MAORI MEETING HOUSE)
Gisborne/Turanga, New Zealand; built and owned by the Rongowhakaata people of
Turanga. 1842–1843, restored in 1935. Wood, shell, grass, flax, and pigments.
Museum of New Zealand/Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington. (Neg. B18358). Museum of
New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. [Fig. 28-11]

• Curvilinear patterns, kowhaiwhai, decorate the rafters and lattice
panels (tukutuku) made by women fill the spaces between wall
planks.
• Cook's expeditions in the late eighteenth century showed that each
tribe and region had its own style.
– Compare the storehouse door from the Ngäti Päoa to the house
panel.

CARVED FIGURE FROM STOREHOUSE DOORWAY
Ngäti Päoa, Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand. 1500–1800.
Wood, height 33-7/8" (86 cm). Museum of New Zealand/Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington.
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa/Michael Hall. [Fig. 28-12]

• Sculptural figures are rendered frontally and have large heads with
open eyes.
• Both the Hauraki Gulf figure and the Te-Hau-ki-Turanga figure have
figures between their legs representing their descendants.

POUPOU (PANEL)
From Te-Hau-ki-Turanga. Wood and red pigment, height 4'7" (140 cm).
Museum of New Zealand/Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington. Museum of New Zealand Te
Papa Tongarewa. [Fig. 28-13]

Marquesas Islands (1 of 2)
• Tattoo in the Marquesas Islands
– Spirals were prominently featured in Maori facial tattoos, and rows
of triangles indicated Hawaiian designs.
 Each design had a name and meaning.
– Special houses were constructed for the tattooing of high-ranking
people due to the painful and expensive nature of the art.

TATTOOED NATIVE OF NUKAHIVA
Plate 10 in A. J. von Krusenstern's Voyage Round the World in the Years 1803, 1804,
1805, 1806, ... 1813. Richard Belgrave Hoppner (trans.). London: J. Murray.
© The British Library Board (981.i.8 frontispiece). [Fig. 28-14]

Marquesas Islands (2 of 2)
• Tattoo in the Marquesas Islands
– It was forbidden in the nineteenth century by French colonists.
 A resurgence in the 1970s brought about the full tattooing of
Marquesan Teve Tupuhia, who based his designs on drawings
made by George Langsdorff dated 1804.

DANCER FROM THE MARQUESAS ART AND CULTURE FESTIVAL
2013. Ua Huka, Marquesas.
Photographer Lionel Gouverneur. Photo: Lionel Gouverneur. [Fig. 28-15]

Hawaii, Rapa Nui, Samoa (1 of 4)
• Feather Cloak from Hawaii
– This emblem of high status was presented to Commodore
Lawrence Kenny in 1843.
– Its foundation consisted of coconut fiber netting into which bundles
of feathers were tied.
– Cloaks symbolized protection for the wearer and were imbued with
mana.

FEATHER CLOAK (KNOWN AS THE KEARNY CLOAK)
Hawaii. c. 1843.
Red, yellow, and black feathers, olona cordage, and netting, length 55-3/4" (143 cm).
Bishop Museum, Honolulu. [Fig. 28-16]

• Monumental Moai on Rapa Nui
– Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, is the most isolated locale in Oceana.
 This island was originally named Te Pito o te Henúa, Navel of
the World.
 It became a part of Chile in 1888.
– Three volcanoes comprise the corners of the triangular shape.

• Monumental Moai on Rapa Nui
– Impressive stone sculpture found here is part of an established
Polynesian tradition.
– Neat rows of figures called moai were made from volcanic tuff and
red scoria.
 They face frontally and have long, pointed noses.
 Their bodies emerge from the ground just below waist level.

MOAI ANCESTOR FIGURES
Ahu Nau Nau, Rapa Nui (Easter Island). c. 1000?–1500 CE, restored 1978.
Volcanic stone (tufa), average height approx. 36' (11 m).
© Shin/Shutterstock. [Fig. 28-17]

• Tapa (Siapo) in Samoa
– Bark cloth, usually made by women, originates from the inner bark
from branches of the paper mulberry tree.
– Plain and decorated tapa were used for clothing, mats, and
ceremonial purposes.
– Distinctive design styles developed, including one using an upeti
tablet and pigment rubbing.

TAPA (SIAPO VALA)
Samoa. 20th century. 58-5/8" × 57" (149 × 145 cm).
Auckland Museum, New Zealand. (AM 46892). Photo: Krzysztof Pfeiffer, Auckland
Museum. [Fig. 28-18]

Recent Art in Oceana
• A cultural resurgence swept the Pacific in the late 1960s and early
1970s.
• Independence, the civil rights movement in the United States, and
dramatic increases in tourism brought a new awareness to the
importance of indigenous cultures.

Festival of Pacific Arts
• The festival began in 1972 in Fiji and has been held every four years.
• Musicians with traditional drums wore elaborate headdresses and
necklaces made from kina shells.
• Many Pacific cultures now have their own festivals of a result.
– They incite young people to learn about their heritage.

MUSICIANS FROM PAPUA NEW GUINEA AT THE FESTIVAL OF PACIFIC ARTS
Pago Pago, American Samoa, 2008.
Photo: Caroline Yacoe. [Fig. 28-19]

Central Desert Painting (1 of 2)
• Sand drawing is an ancient ritual art form arranging ochers, seeds, and
feathers in symbolic patterns.
• Pintubi men trained in sacred knowledge were encouraged to
transform their ephemeral art into a painted mural.
– "Dot paintings" became a worldwide phenomenon and economic
mainstay.

Central Desert Painting (2 of 2)
• Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri worked with his canvases on the floor, as
he would have done for traditional sand painting.
– While his work Man's Love Story seems abstract, it conveys a
narrative of a couple from a Dreaming story.
– It is effectively a map showing the ancestors' journey through
tracks, direction lines, and sitting marks.

A CLOSER LOOK: Man's Love Story by Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri.
1978. Synthetic polymer paint on canvas. 6'11-3/4" × 8'4-1/4" (2.15 × 2.57 m).
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council
Contemporary Art Purchase Grant, 1980. © Estate of the artist 2016, licensed by
Aboriginal Artists Agency Ltd. [Fig. 28-20]

Shigeyuki Kihara
• Shigeyuki Kihara is a multimedia and performance artist of Samoan
and Japanese descent who lives in New Zealand.
• In Ulugali'i Samoa: Samoan Couple, she explores issues of culture,
identity, stereotypes, authenticity, representation, and gender roles by
reappropriating colonial photographs.

Shigeyuki Kihara ULUGALI'I SAMOA: SAMOAN COUPLE
2004–2005. C-type photograph, edition 5, 31-1/2" × 23-3/5" (80 × 60 cm).
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of Shigeyuki Kihara, 2009. © 2016. Image
copyright The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art Resource/Scala, Florence. [Fig. 28-21]

Think About It (1 of 2)
• Explain how differences in environment, including available resources,
affect the nature of the visual arts in the Pacific. Include architectural
forms and body adornment in your answer.
• How is the human body adorned and/or depicted in art across the
Pacific? How do these adornments and depictions define or enhance
status, authority, and gender roles?

Think About It (2 of 2)
• Assess the importance of ancestors and the different ways in which
they are engaged, honored, or invoked through various Pacific art
forms. Focus your answer on two works from two different cultural and
geographic settings.
• Discuss the impact of contact with Western society on the arts and
cultures of the peoples of the Pacific. How are contemporary
indigenous artists throughout the Pacific addressing the issues of their
own time and place?

0134484592 ch28

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