WHERE IS TAPA MADE? - Museums and Galleries Queensland

Transcription

Talking Tapa: Pasifika Bark Cloth in Queensland
Information sheet (SOSE): WHERE IS TAPA MADE?
There are three areas in the Pacific Ocean by which regions are named:
1. Melanesia, which means ‘black islands’, a term derived from the Greek word meaning
black
2. Polynesia, which means ‘many islands’
3. Micronesia, which means ‘tiny islands’
These terms were originally devised by the French navigator and explorer Dumont d’Urville, to
describe the three ethno-cultural and linguistic regions of the Pacific. This means that each region
has similarities in the way the people look (eg. hair type, skin colour), the languages they speak,
and the types of societies in which they live.
In this exhibition, we look at tapa from:
• The Melanesian islands and nations of Papua New Guinea, West Papua (a province of
Indonesia), The Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia and the Melanesian islands of
Fiji
• The Polynesian island nations of Samoa, Tonga and the Polynesian islands of Fiji
• The Micronesian island of Futuna
Some islands in the Pacific do not make tapa because the main tree from which people take the
inner bark to make the tapa, the Paper Mulberry tree, does not grow there. In the Cook Islands,
many of the Paper Mulberry trees became diseased and died, so no tapa is made there anymore.
While tapa is also made elsewhere in the Pacific (eg. Hawaii and Tahiti), we have chosen not to
include tapa from these places in the exhibition because the Pacific Islanders in those nations
have little relationship to Australia – either there are very few migrants from these islands in
Australia and/or there or no examples of their tapa in Queensland collections or amongst
community groups and individual members.
Map of South West Pacific
Discussion and Activities (SOSE): WHERE IS TAPA MADE?
Primary Activities
List two countries from Melanesia.
List two countries from Polynesia.
On the map, find one country that does not make tapa cloth.
What country is West Papua a part of?
Secondary Discussion
Why do you think that a map of the whole Pacific Ocean has not been provided?
Do you think Australia’s Torres Strait Islanders make tapa? If not, why not?
Information sheet (SOSE): WHERE IS TAPA MADE?
There are three areas in the Pacific Ocean by which regions are named:
1. Melanesia, which means ‘black islands’, a term derived from the Greek word meaning
black
2. Polynesia, which means ‘many islands’
3. Micronesia, which means ‘tiny islands’
These terms were originally devised by the French navigator and explorer Dumont d’Urville, to
describe the three ethno-cultural and linguistic regions of the Pacific. This means that each region
has similarities in the way the people look (eg. hair type, skin colour), the languages they speak,
and the types of societies in which they live.
In this exhibition, we look at tapa from:
• The Melanesian islands and nations of Papua New Guinea, West Papua (a province of
Indonesia), The Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia and the Melanesian islands of
Fiji
• The Polynesian island nations of Samoa, Tonga and the Polynesian islands of Fiji
• The Micronesian island of Futuna
Some islands in the Pacific do not make tapa because the main tree from which people take the
inner bark to make the tapa, the Paper Mulberry tree, does not grow there. In the Cook Islands,
many of the Paper Mulberry trees became diseased and died, so no tapa is made there anymore.
While tapa is also made elsewhere in the Pacific (eg. Hawaii and Tahiti), we have chosen not to
include tapa from these places in the exhibition because the Pacific Islanders in those nations
have little relationship to Australia – either there are very few migrants from these islands in
Australia and/or there or no examples of their tapa in Queensland collections or amongst
community groups and individual members.
Map of South West Pacific
Discussion and Activities (SOSE): WHERE IS TAPA MADE?
Primary Activities
List two countries from Melanesia.
List two countries from Polynesia.
On the map, find one country that does not make tapa cloth.
What country is West Papua a part of?
Why do you think that a map of the whole Pacific Ocean has not been provided?
Do you think Australia’s Torres Strait Islanders make tapa? If not, why not?
Information sheet (SOSE): TONGA
Tonga – Ngatu First Gifted at a Graduation, Now In Transit
2007, 500 x 500 cm, Courtesy of Dr Max Quanchi
In the Kingdom of Tonga, decorated or painted tapa is called ngatu. This ngatu was originally
gifted to Haufangahau College at the annual graduation ceremony in November 2007, when
Maureen Khan Hafoka was announced Dux of the College. The tapa, which took four months to
make, was made by Maureen’s grandmother and aunties. The ceremony was witnessed by
Queensland University of Technology (QUT) students who, at the time, were in Tonga on
fieldwork. A speech was delivered by Dr. Max Quanchi, the students’ lecturer, at the graduation
ceremony. The ngatu was presented to Dr. Quanchi as a gift to acknowledge his speech, and the
contribution of QUT students while on Eua Island. It hung at QUT Carseldine Campus until it was
lent to this exhibition. QUT postgraduate student Leihua Helu, who lives in Brisbane, is linked
through ancestors to the island of Eua, where the makers of this ngatu are from. Leihua and her
mother, Rose, are pictured below, in front of the ngatu at QUT Carseldine Campus.
After this ngatu has finished touring in Australia as part of this exhibition Dr. Quanchi will gift it
on to the Pacific History Association conference, December 2010. So, this ngatu, which began its
life at Haufangahau College, will continue its long and loved journey through the gifting process;
typical in Tongan cultural practice in the past and now in the postcolonial world of migrations
and reconnections.
Gifting of tapa constantly takes place between
the Pacific Islands, particularly Tonga and Fiji,
and Australia and may return in cycles as the
tapa is passed on.
Like a lot of Tongan tapa this one is very, very
big: five square metres; and was made to be
gifted. Tonga makes the biggest tapa or ngatu
in the world.
Leihua and her mother Rose in front of the Tongan
ngatu at Queensland University of Technology.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE): TONGA
Primary Discussion
In the Tongan language, what is the word for decorated tapa?
Where does this tapa come from?
Why did it come to Australia?
In the Tongan language, what is the word for decorated tapa?
If we didn’t know the history of this tapa, what is unique about it that might suggest that it is
from Tonga?
Where do you think this tapa may go to when it leaves Australia?
How many basic designs can you identify in this tapa?
What do you think the designs are based on?
Activity
Think up three events that such a big tapa may be used for. Describe how the tapa would be
used or displayed.
One of the patterns on this tapa/ngatu is repeated elsewhere in the exhibition. Find the other
example. What number is it?
Information sheet (SOSE): TONGA
Pilinisi Tungi, c. late1950s
Paper mulberry bast, koka (Bischofia javanica) tree, candlenut bark,
bark of mangrove root, red pounded umea soil, 420 x 195 cm
Courtesy of University of Queensland Anthropology Museum
Tongan Ngatu - Prince Pilinisi
Ngatu is the Tongan word for decorated or painted tapa. This Tongan ngatu is a ngatu tahina.
Ngatu tahina is characterised by large areas of light brown paint. This ngatu has no borders on
two ends, which is normal, or it may have been cut from a much larger piece as this is
sometimes the case when buying or gifting Tongan tapa. Ngatu this size is made in sheets glued
together with paste made from arrowroot tubers. The background light brown colour is achieved
by a raised stencil or kupesi placed under the cloth, with smaller pieces soaked in dye made
from the scraped then squeezed bark of the koka tree (Bischofia javanica) pressed over the
ngatu in a repetitive pattern to cover the whole cloth. This process can create an infinite degree
of density in the background rubbing to achieve the desired effect. Overpainting was then
carried out with deep brown and black paint using a bamboo or pandanus seed spread out like a
brush. This ngatu shows the cross-cultural integration of many Tongan tapas. Painted in the
contemporary style, it includes western motifs, such as the plane, the lettering “Paul Passenger”
in English and Pilinisi Tungi Koe sisi maile o Tungi in Tongan. Tongan tapa often includes
historical events from the post-contact era. Perhaps the most used was the Halley’s Comet
design (like a sun with a tail) after the comet appeared over Tonga in 1910.
The wording Koe sisi maile o Tungi translates as “The festoon or garland (made entirely of the
maile plant) of Tungi”. Prince Tungi wore such a garland on certain ceremonial occasions. It is a
common image on ngatu, as are other images relating to the Royal family of Tonga. Pilinisi
Tungi translates as “Prince Tungi”, the son of Queen Salote, who was most likely the Minister for
Aviation c. late 1950s/early 1960s when this ngatu was made. This explains the use of the plane
image. Prince Tungi became King in 1965.
The Kingdom of Tonga is the only monarchy in the Pacific, which is unique amongst the Pacific
nations of Oceania, and Tongans are very proud of this fact.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE): TONGA
Primary Discussion
What is the Tongan word for tapa?
Which member of the Tongan royal family is this tapa about?
Why does it have aeroplanes in it?
What type of Tongan tapa is this? Give the Tongan name.
Why is it called this?
Why are Tongans proud of their Kingdom?
Activity
Write down all of the Tongan words you can find in this ngatu. What is the English translation of
these words and why have they been included in the design?
The Seal of Tonga is one of the most common images on Tongan tapa, though it is not in this
example. Find number 34b in the exhibition so that you know what it looks like. Now look at all
of the other Tongan tapa in the exhibition to identify if any have the Seal of Tonga on them.
Record the exhibition numbers of any that you find.
Information Sheet (SOSE): FIJIAN WEDDINGS IN BRISBANE
Roma Street Parklands, Brisbane
The bride and groom
The Tuicolo bridal party
The Wedding of Susana Tuicolo
The wedding ensemble of Susana Tuicolo is one of three I Sulu ni Vakamau (Fijian name for
wedding outfit) in the exhibition. Luisa and Vilaseri Tuicolo first came to Queensland from Viti
Levu, Fiji, for Vilaseri to complete his medical studies at the University of Queensland. They
stayed in Australia and had four children here. Vilaseri became an active community member
and has been the President of the Fijian Communities of Queensland on and off for the last 25
years. Susana, their oldest daughter, married in Brisbane at St Andrews Uniting Church. The
masi (tapa) for the bridal party outfits, comprising the wedding sets for the bride, the
bridesmaid and the two flower girls, were commissioned by the Tuicolo family from the Moce
Island Women’s Masi Cooperative. Luisa and Susana worked together to create the
contemporary style and patterns of these outfits out of the metres and metres of masi kesa
(patterned tapa), masi vulavula (plain white tapa) and masi kuvui (smoked tapa). These
include: the bride’s petticoat and bodice, short top skirt (rua na tikinalai), long skirt, train of
smoked masi, posies, and the attendants’ outfits (all pictured above). Smoked tapa, seen here
as the bride’s train, was once only worn by chiefs and important people, and takes a lot longer
to make than other masi. Today, those who can afford it may use it.
The Tuicolo children, like Luisa and Vilaseri, are proud of their Fijian heritage and always
welcome the opportunity to acknowledge and showcase it. So, when Susana said that she
wanted her wedding dress made of masi, it came as no surprise to her parents – in fact, they
were half expecting it. Susana’s husband, Peter, is Anglo-Australian so it was decided that he
and his party would dress in traditional western attire, but wear masi kesa around their waists.
Whilst showing the two different cultures and heritage, these waist bands act as, and provide, a
subtle link between the cultural backgrounds of the couple. Having a Fijian style wedding in
Brisbane, the Tuicolos were able to make their Fijian heritage a very important part of their
daughter’s wedding celebrations.
Discussion (SOSE): FIJIAN WEDDINGS IN BRISBANE
Primary and Secondary Discussion
How many different types of Fijian masi were used in the bride’s outfit?
What is masi kuvui?
What is masi kesa?
What is masi vulavula?
Why do you think the Tuicolo family is important in Queensland?
Why do you think Susana Tuicolo wanted to get married in masi?
Information Sheet (SOSE): FIJIAN WEDDINGS IN BRISBANE (continued)
Lote Tuqiri’s wedding bower, Pindari Hills QLD
Lote Tuqiri, his bride and wedding guests
Fijian weddings in Brisbane are common. This exhibition has two wedding outfits that were worn
during ceremonies in Brisbane. Perhaps the best-known Fijian to marry in Queensland is Lote
Tuqiri, the rugby player. The name for the wedding outfit, male or female is I Sulu ni Vakamau.
Lote Tuqiri’s I Sulu ni Vakamau was made by Miline Finau from Korotolu Village, Moce Island,
Fiji, where many families commission wedding outfits from. Tapa in Fiji is called masi and tapa
with patterned designs on it is called masi kesa.
Lote’s
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
wedding outift is made up of five pieces:
Wrap-around sash belt, known as kena i oro masi
Long underskirt
Short overskirt, known as rua na tikinalai
Over belt, known as salu salu
One lai, which is like a large necklace
All of the items making up the wedding outfit are made from smoked masi (also known as masi
kuvui) which was once only used by chiefs and nobles. Now, the use of smoked masi is far more
common.
The wedding set Lote originally brought from Fiji was of a harder, less-flexible masi kesa, which
his family had asked Jiowana Dau Miles to prepare. She had such difficulty with this set that she
offered a much softer one of her own that she had been keeping for a very special occasion. So,
like other Fijian families in Brisbane, the Tuqiri family used the skills and masi of Jiowana Dau
Miles to dress the groom and decorate the wedding bower and reception hall. The two photos
above were taken by Jiowana. You can see the wedding bower with mats and masi around.
These were brought and redistributed as gifts to certain wedding guests, in typical reciprocal
tradition as practised in Fijian migrant communities wherever they gather in the West today.
Reciprocity (the noun for reciprocate) is a very common form of social interaction amongst
Pacific peoples. It means ‘gifting in a giving-back fashion’, and is an exchange where the
exchange does not all happen at the one time. Some wedding guests would have given gifts or
helped the Tuqiri family previously, and at the wedding they are remembered with gifts of masi
and/or mats. These gifts are taken from the wedding mound vivivi of mats and masi. The top
most layer of the mound must always have a masi on it. Behind the mound must be a taunamu
ni viti, a large masi. In most cases the names of the couple are stencilled onto the tapa or, in a
mixed marriage such as this one, the name of the Fijian wedding partner.
At very important occasions and celebrations, people like to
remember their customs and celebrate where they have
come from, especially if they are migrants in a new land,
like Lote Tuquiri’s family. Lote was very proud to wear
traditional Fijian wedding attire and, with his family,
presented the tapa and the mats at his wedding.
To the left is the wedding outfit Lote wore, modelled here by
Petero Kubunavanua.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE): FIJIAN WEDDINGS IN BRISBANE
Primary Discussion
What are these three photographs about?
How many separate pieces are there in this male wedding outfit?
Why is the tapa or masi brown?
Why did Lote Tuqiri get married in Australia in Fijian wedding attire?
What happened at Lote’s wedding that is different to what usually happens at EuropeanAustralian weddings?
Why do you think it is important to understand other people’s customs?
Have you been to a Pacific Island wedding in Australia?
Activity
Describe a wedding that you have been to and the customs, special activities and dress at that
wedding.
Information sheet (SOSE): PAPUA NEW GUINEA
1 Oro Province – Representational design
spider, c. 1974
Ceremonial bark cloth, paper mulberry
bark, natural pigments, 200 x 115 cm
Courtesy of Queensland University
Anthropology Museum
2
New Ireland, c. 1920s 1 of 4
panels of beaten bark, natural
pigments 31 x 19 cm
Courtesy of Queensland University
Anthropology Museum
Papua New Guinea is the largest and most populous country in Melanesia, with more than 6
million people. Papua New Guinea is Australia’s nearest neighbour. In Melanesian cultures like
Papua New Guinea communities can be very diverse - with 700 different languages, many
different customs, social structures, clothing styles, art forms and rituals abound. This exhibition
includes examples of tapa from the Papua New Guinea provinces of Oro, Manus, East New
Britain, West New Britain and New Ireland. It does not include the magnificent masks and
towering structures made for rituals and performances of men’s secret societies in the Gulf
Province, Bismarck Archipelago and some areas of the Highlands because these would have
been very difficult to travel with this exhibition’s two-year tour of Queensland, New South Wales
and Victoria. In most places in Papua New Guinea tapa making has long since ceased and there
are only four or five community groups throughout this very large country that still actively
make tapa. Oro Province, from where example 1 comes, is the most prolific region for tapa
making today.
The people who make the most Oro Province tapa are the coastal Maisin people of the
Collingwood Bay region. Individuals, families and clan groups own specific designs which,
although abstract, are often associated with the totemic plants and animals of their clans and
only their small group can use these designs. The clan designs were once replicated on the
women’s facial tattoos until this custom was discontinued. Representational imagery in Oro
Province decoration is quite rare, however this exhibition includes the spider and crocodile
designs. Oro designs are more frequently abstract linear, geometric or meandering patterns (see
next group of examples). The artists who created this spider tapa and the crocodile bark cloths
kept the stylistic convention of repeating the design in four panels. Nearly all traditional Oro
Province tapa cloth has four design panels.
Tapa making and design was once the province of women only in this region. Now some men
are involved as tradition gives way to modernisation. Maisin tapa production is very strong. The
people still wear tapa skirts and loin cloths for very special occasions like weddings and young
men’s initiation ceremonies. Tapa from Oro is also a mainstay of the tourist market and it is
increasingly being made for particular overseas interests, such as exhibitions in big public art
galleries and museums and the art market. With more freedom artists may now choose to be
more innovative when designing pieces that do not need to adhere to local traditional customs.
Example 1 tapa is likely to be used for ceremonial use because of its size. If it was slightly
smaller, it could be used for a wraparound skirt.
Example 2 is a small bark cloth painting from New Ireland estimated to be made in the 1920s
(or earlier). New Ireland and New Britain are two of the very few islands in the Pacific, along
with the Solomon Islands, which traditionally used a blue dye, possibly made from the wild
banana palm sap.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE): PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Do these two tapas come from the same part of Papua New Guinea?
What could example 1 have been used for?
Some tapa is used by young men to dress for their initiation. What is initiation?
Which colour in these examples is unusual for tapa? Where does the dye for this colour come
from?
Further Secondary Discussion
How is tapa design in Oro Province changing? What are some of the reasons for this?
What is ‘initiation’ and why is it important? Why is tapa cloth used in initiation rituals?
Activities
Do you know anybody with Papua New Guinea tapa cloth? It might be under their bed, on top of
their wardrobe or stored away somewhere. Ask your parents, grandparents, older family
members and bring it to class if you can. If not, describe it to your class. Is it like any tapa in
this exhibition?
Information sheet (SOSE): PAPUA NEW GUINEA (continued)
1 Oro Province – Uiaku village, 1980
2 Oro Province - Figurative fragment design,
Women’s ceremonial skirt - curvilinear,
abstract design
Paper mulberry bast, charcoal/soot,
mangrove root bark, ochres/umea dirt
116 x 86 cm
Courtesy Joan G. Winter
c. 1966
Paper mulberry bast, ochres, mangrove root
bark, ash 50 x 30 cm
Gifted to Robert (Bob) Jones, inherited by
daughter, Meryn Jones
Courtesy of Meryn Jones
Papua New Guinea and Australian Expatriates
Many Australians have lived in Papua New Guinea and loved it. Many have examples of tapa in
their homes and handle them fondly with the memories of a magic time in a very different land
to their own - full of extraordinary people, landscapes, customs and smiles. Some have very
kindly loaned their tapa for this exhibition; others would not lend their tapa because they wish
to keep them close at hand in their homes.
Joan Winter, the curator of this exhibition, first visited Papua New Guinea in 1971 as a student
and fell in love with Melanesian cultures. She lived there as a secondary school teacher in 19789. Most secondary schools in Papua New Guinea are boarding schools, as was Joan’s, because
the terrain is so rugged and 80% of the population still live in small villages dotted all over the
mainland and on the hundreds of islands that make up Papua New Guinea. Joan also worked as
a researcher in the1980s. She collected example 1 of Oro Province tapa cloth in 1980 when she
visited one of the main tapa making villages in Papua New Guinea – Uiaku Village of the Maisin
Coastal people.
Example 2 is also from Oro Province. This fragment has been with the Jones family for over 40
years. Bob Jones took his young family to Keravat, New Ireland, in 1962 where he became an
art teacher. He also taught at the first national senior high school at Sogeri, then he became a
District Inspector of the Manual Arts and Crafts. Many of his students gave him gifts of
traditional cultural heritage. This unusual and rare tapa fragment was one of those gifts. While
human-like spirit figures do appear in Oro Province tapa design, they are not common.
In 1901 when Australia gained its independence from Great Britain, it agreed to take
responsibility for British New Guinea, which became Papua. When Germany was defeated in
World War I in1918, the League of Nations gave Australia a mandate to govern New Guinea.
After World War II the Territory of Papua and New Guinea was administered jointly by Australia
until the country gained its independence in September 1975. Many Queenslanders had been
attracted to work in the Territory of Papua and New Guinea in the colonial administration, as
kiaps (district officers, patrol officers), teachers, health workers, planters, miners and
missionaries, and formed strong attachments to the country and its people. Many Australians,
including the main writers for the catalogue for this exhibition and some lenders, remember
Papua New Guinea with a profound fondness and longing. Since Independence, by far the
largest number of Papua New Guineans who migrated to Australia have settled in Queensland.
So it follows that the majority of tapa cloths in public art gallery and museum collections in
Australia come from Papua New Guinea.
Glossary meaning:
Expatriates are people who come from one country but choose to live in another for a time.
They are not migrants because they maintain their citizenship from their birth country.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE): PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Primary Discussion
Look at a world map. Where is Papua New Guinea? Where is it in relation to Australia?
From where in Papua New Guinea do these two examples of tapa come?
What have these tapa been made from?
Do you think it is important for Australian students to learn about Papua New Guinea? Why?
Explain the meaning of expatriate.
How did these two examples of tapa come to Australia? Where are they from?
What are their designs based on?
What was Australia’s role in the development of Papua New Guinea as an independent nation?
Do you think it is important for Australian students to learn about Papua New Guinea? Why?
Activities
Papua New Guinea is a world vastly different to Australia. Think about what you know about this
country or imagine what it is like there. Use these recollections and imaginations to describe its
people, landscape or geography, climate and customs.
Do you know anybody that used to live as an expatriate in Papua New Guinea? Find out why
they lived there. If you can’t think of anybody immediately, ask your parents or grandparents if
they may have known of someone - thousands and thousands of Australians have lived there at
one time or another.
Identify some other places where you may find a lot of expatriate Australians. Why do you think
they may have gone to that country to live?
Information sheet (SOSE): SAMOAN FUNERAL CUSTOMS
1
1
2
In Memory of our Father, Fea Risone Titina Perese.
Born 1928 Magiagi village Upolo Samoa, Died 2000 Ipswich Queensland Australia.
This is a personal story from Savali Harvey, a Samoan Australian, and her family. Savali shares
with us the story of this tapa cloth, and explains how and why Tongan ngatu is often used by
Samoan communities:
Talofa. My name is Savali Harvey. I have lived in Ipswich on the west side of Brisbane for the
last 14 years. My family came to Australia from New Zealand. I have worked as a Pacific Island
Community Liaison Officer and community development officer at universities, high schools and
community centres. I first thought of contributing this story to the Talking Tapa exhibition a long
time ago then got busy with life. My relatives, particularly my late uncle Tapuala however
decided to not let me rest until it was written. Here it is.
Our father, Risone Titina Perese, received the name Fea when he became a Matai (Chief). His
father was Siagiagi Perese Talamaivao, a clergyman in Magiagi village, and his mother was
Fa’alua Perese (nee Fa’alua Tuilata Iese). Our grandfather, Siagiagi Perese, was awarded a
Certificate of Naturalisation for assisting the New Zealand government with the construction of
the water pipelines laid through Magiagi Village. When asked what he could be given in return,
he said the freedom to travel, to seek a better life. That’s how our father was able to travel to
New Zealand in 1950.
In the 1970s our father was the first Samoan to operate his own business in Karangahapi Road
(also known as ‘K’ Rd) in Auckland, which became a Samoan community hub. He had a passion
for sports. In New Zealand he supported and assisted young Samoan boxers and wrestlers. He
travelled overseas to Trinidad, America, Australia and the Islands to support boxing and
wrestling. In 1981 our mother passed away and a year later father suffered a stroke. We took
turns in caring for him, but the main responsibility fell on our oldest sister and her husband,
Fa’alua and Folau Togia, and their children. They moved to Australia for ‘a better way of life’ in
1986, bringing our father with them. I followed with my husband in 1995. Dad continued to
suffer several strokes. His grandchildren and great grandchildren visited him regularly and gave
him much joy. In October 2000 Fea Risone Titina Perese passed away quietly in his sleep.
As we have been taught by our parents, aunties and uncles and they, by their parents and
grandparents, the body of our loved ones are wrapped in bark cloth. With the introduction of the
coffin, the coffin is wrapped in tapa cloth also; the last show of love and respect. Today we often
use Tongan tapa as our traditional Samoan siapo is not common now. Our traditions are strong
within our hearts and so, before our father was laid to rest, his coffin was wrapped in tapa; he
was lowered into the ground and his children and grandchildren shovelled the dirt into the grave
until he was completely covered. Our father is buried here in Ipswich, Australia, so that he is
close to us, and his grandchildren and great grandchildren can visit him still.
When you see this display, remember the life of our father and our aiga (extended family) with
warmth.
- Savali Harvey (nee Perese) on behalf of Faalua Togia (nee Perese), Richard Lisatisone
Perese and Helen Tauvale Perese, the grandchildren and great grandchildren.
2
Lina Foga’a‘s last night
Beaten paper mulberry bast and dyes, 500 x 500 cm,
Courtesy Orini Mauga Barnett
This is the story of Orini Mauga’s uncle’s ‘last night’ – in Samoan
culture this refers to the night after the person’s death and it is
very important and special to the family of the deceased.
Orini Mauga was born in A’ufaga Aleipata but brought up in Fusi
Safotulafai, Sava’ii, Samoa. She migrated to New Zealand, where
she married Max Barnett in 1968. Due to the freezing climate
they decided to make their home in a warmer part of Australia.
Orini cared for her uncle, Lina Foga’a, from 2005 until he passed away in September 2008.
This Tongan ngatu/siapo (Samoan name for funeral tapa) was gifted to Uncle Lina at a cousin’s
nephew’s wedding in preparation for his funeral. Straight after Uncle Lina died he was brought
back to his home from the hospital. This ngatu was laid on the floor of the lounge room in Orini’s
house in Underwood where Uncle Lina was brought to spend his last night with his family. His
relatives slept around him on this tapa and kept him company on that final night.
Tapa has many uses. In Australia it is perhaps most used to decorate Pasifika community,
educational and networking events. This one was last used to decorate a hall for the launching
of the Logan Samoan Advisory Council Inc at Logan in November 2008. It was wanted for a
friend’s daughter’s 21st birthday party but this exhibition was given priority. Most Samoans use
Tongan tapa today for such purposes because it is large and easy to find. Very little Samoan
siapo/tapa is made today.
Discussion (SOSE): SAMOAN FUNERAL CUSTOMS
Why do you think the family of Savali Harvey came to Australia?
Who looked after Savali’s father and why?
What is the Tongan name for tapa? What is the Samoan name for tapa?
How was the Tongan ngatu (1) used?
List different ways in which the Tongan ngatu (2) was used?
Why is Tongan tapa used by Samoans?
Why do Pacific Island people wrap their coffins in tapa?
Why do Pacific Island people wrap their coffins in tapa when their loved ones die?
In what various ways were these Tongan ngatu used?
Why was Tongan ngatu used for Samoan funeral purposes?
What is meant by the ‘final night’ in Samoan culture and why do you think it is important?
How was Lina Foga’a‘s final night spent?
What else might the large tapa (2) be used for?
Activity
What else might you use large tapa for in Australia? Propose some uses in your local
community.
Uncle Lina's last night before the day of his actual burial is only part of his funeral celebrations.
Write down what you know about funerals in Australia.
In Australia where do we visit our dead to say goodbye?
What similarities and differences might there be to this aspect of the Samoan funeral (as
practiced in Queensland)?
Information sheet (SOSE): SAMOA/AUSTRALIA
Taupati Fa’atasi Samoan Cultural Group - Miss Samoa Australia costume
1 Miss Samoa Australia winning outfit 2007 front of
tapa laü’a jacket with coconut laü’a skirt showing
2 Back of tapa jacket
This is a personal story from Koleta Galumalemana, a Samoan Australian, and her involvement
in setting up a Samoan Culture Group in Australia. This group is active in promoting Samoan
culture in Queensland, in conjunction with events such as Miss Samoa Australia:
Talofa lava! My name is Koleta Galumalemana. I left Samoa for New Zealand in 1984 to offer a
better education for my daughter, Yvette Galumalemana–Petelo. After my daughter received her
Degree, we decided to move to Australia to increase our opportunities in a bigger country. My
dear friend Afioga Muliagatele Filipina came with us and together we set up the Taupati Fa’atasi
Samoan Cultural Group. Taupati Fa’atasi means ‘In Unity We Live and Prosper’. It is based in
Logan City on the outskirts of Brisbane. The aim of our group is to give our young Australian
Samoans the chance to learn and maintain their cultural heritage and be proud of who they are
in their adopted country, as we as a community often feel marginalised and stereotyped. We not
only teach performance pieces such as mä’ulu’ulu (action songs), säsä (war dances), fa’ataupati,
(slap dances), but also our myths, legends and history. Taupati Fa’atasi has a regular performing
group of 60 plus members. We have performed in many Pasifika, multicultural, sporting and
other events around Brisbane and Queensland. We have performed annually for the Samoan
Independence Day Celebrations since 2001, and Miss Samoa Australia since 2003.
The vision behind the Miss Samoa Australia is to showcase our cultural heritage to mainstream
Australia. Miss Samoa promotes Fa’a Samoa (The Samoan Way) across art forms and has
become a prominent Samoan community event in Queensland. The dress of Miss Samoa
Australia must reflect her Samoan heritage and is an opportunity for innovative dress design,
often employing bark cloth (tapa). Above is the winning costume for 2007. Darlene Filipina
Petelo designed this outfit and wore it in August 2007 for the Miss Samoa Australia beauty
pageant, held at Logan Entertainment Centre, Logan City. Mrs Lavalea Ama Magele of
Sunnybank made and put together the outfit. The jacket is made from laü’a (Samoan plain bark
cloth). It is enhanced with cats’ eye and other shells found on the Gold Coast beaches. The
flower design on the front right hand side (1) is a sun made of cut coconut sheath, decorated
with young coconut shells. On the end of the petals are mature coconut shell pieces. The coconut
tree painted on the back of the jacket (2) complements the coconut fibres used on the front and
for the inner bodice, belt and skirt, in conjunction with more laü’a. The coconut is the tree of life
for Pacific peoples. It is one of the most resourceful plants on Earth. Somehow, Darlene thought
of the much-told Samoan legend of Sina and Her Tuna (Sina and her eel), which describes the
origins of the coconut tree of life when she was designing this outfit.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE): SAMOA/AUSTRALIA
Taupati Fa’atasi Samoan Cultural Group - Miss Samoa Australia costume
Primary Discussion
Which two countries inspired the making of The Miss Samoa Australia outfit?
Why do you think a Miss Samoa Australia contest was developed in Queensland?
Name three materials from which the Miss Samoa Australia outfit has been made.
Why do you think Koleta Galumalemana and Afioga Muliagatele Filipina came to Australia?
What do you think are the advantages of living in Australia and what might the disadvantages be
for these women?
Name four materials used to make the Miss Samoa Australia outfit.
Provide at least four reasons why the coconut tree is so important for Pacific Islanders.
What is laü’a?
Discuss the main aim of Miss Samoa Australia; where does the emphasis lie for this competition?
Do you think this is a similar aim to the Miss Australia contest today?
What other nations now resident in Australia’s diverse cultural mix could benefit from a similar
competition?
Primary and Secondary Activity
Design an outfit (for a very special occasion) that you think would suit Pacific Islanders living in
Australia.
Information sheet (SOSE, Visual Art): VANUATU
1
1
2
3
Erromango Island - Nemas-itse, c.1900
Banyan tree bast, charcoal, natural pigments, 179 x 60 cm; Collected by Captain MercerSmith c.1900 Donated by his son in 1951, Courtesy of University of Queensland
Anthropology Museum
On Erromango Island, Vanuatu, bark cloth was made by women from the inner bark of the
banyan tree. Freehand designs were painted on the cloth. Women wore the finished nemas-itse
(tapa cloth in Erromango language) over the shoulder on ceremonial occasions. The first
example was collected by Captain Mercer-Smith, a frequent visitor to the islands of the New
Hebrides (now Vanuatu) from the 1890s to the 1900s. He was a regulator of the indentured
labour trade, which brought Islanders to work on Queensland’s sugar plantations. There are
descendants of Erromango people among Australia’s South Sea Islander population, mainly
those living in central and northern Queensland. When their ancestors came to Australia they
could bring very little of their culture with them, so remembering some of their customs, arts
and crafts is very important to their descendents in order to develop a better understanding of
their islands of origin.
2
Made by Moise Jobo Lovo, 2007 Efate Island
Banyan bast, ochres, 73 x 17 cm; Acquired from Moise Jobo by Joan G. Winter Port Vila,
Vanuatu 2008
Courtesy of Joan G. Winter
Many Australians now go to Vanuatu as it has become a major tourist and holiday destination,
particularly because it is easy and inexpensive to fly there. Australian South Sea Islanders also
return to visit their villages of origin. When the curator of this exhibition, Joan Winter, visited
Vanuatu, she went to Moise Jobo’s home in Port Vila to view and discuss his painted tapa. She
selected this small piece as a memento of that visit. The traditional origins of the figures are
obvious when compared with example 3. Moise comes from Erromango Island and has drawn on
old museum examples of the Erromango painting style to inform his work. Moise said that live
fish shapes denote life and the fish bones and skeletons in many of his works represented
death. However, his current work more commonly deals with the male figurative form. In this
example, we have both male and female forms.
3
Traditional figurative design – Erromango Island c.1900
Banyan tree bast, vegetable dyes, 179 x 95 cm
Courtesy of Queensland Museum
The specific meaning of this human-like figurative design has been lost. However the design
refers to both the spirit and human forms. Today the figures are painted as if they are dancing,
like in example 2.
Discussion and Activity (SOSE, Visual Art): VANUATU
What tree are these examples of tapa made from?
Where did the Australian South Sea Islanders originally come from?
Why is tapa from the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu of particular importance in Australia today?
Compare the designs of these examples with those from the Solomon Islands. What are the
major differences?
What do you think the figurative element in example 3 represents?
Activity
Identify four different design elements in these three tapas and redraw them here or on a
separate piece of paper.

WHERE IS TAPA MADE? - Museums and Galleries Queensland

Transcription

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