EXHIBITED
Home is where the art is, September 2012, Coo-ee Art Gallery
Metamophis-Contemporary Indigenous Sculptures and Objects, October 2009, Coo-ee Art Gallery
Form and Function, October 2008
ARTWORK STORY
This Tiwi pole from Bathurst Island, circa 1950, is carved from ironwood and replete with ochre-painted designs. It relates to the Pukumani ceremony, the culmination of ritual mourning following a death. Several months after burial, in-laws of the deceased are commissioned to carve and paint elaborate tutini (poles), which are erected at the gravesite during a public ceremony of song and dance. Tunga (bark bags) are placed upside down on top of the poles to mark the finality of death.
These sculpturally striking forms were traditionally left to the elements, gradually returning to the land from which they were made. While bloodwood was commonly used for ritual poles, cured ironwood later became preferred for commercial carving due to its durability. Contemporary carving of Pukumani poles represents an ongoing expression of Tiwi cultural knowledge through both ceremony and art.
Tutini with a pronged or forked apex are associated with the conflict between Purukuparli and his brother Taparra, the Moon Man. Diamond and curved motifs are linked to female symbolism, though ultimately each pole represents the totality and complexity of Tiwi cultural identity.
EXHIBITED
Home is where the art is, September 2012, Coo-ee Art Gallery
Metamophis-Contemporary Indigenous Sculptures and Objects, October 2009, Coo-ee Art Gallery
Form and Function, October 2008
ARTWORK STORY
This Tiwi pole from Bathurst Island, circa 1950, is carved from ironwood and replete with ochre-painted designs. It relates to the Pukumani ceremony, the culmination of ritual mourning following a death. Several months after burial, in-laws of the deceased are commissioned to carve and paint elaborate tutini (poles), which are erected at the gravesite during a public ceremony of song and dance. Tunga (bark bags) are placed upside down on top of the poles to mark the finality of death.
These sculpturally striking forms were traditionally left to the elements, gradually returning to the land from which they were made. While bloodwood was commonly used for ritual poles, cured ironwood later became preferred for commercial carving due to its durability. Contemporary carving of Pukumani poles represents an ongoing expression of Tiwi cultural knowledge through both ceremony and art.
Tutini with a pronged or forked apex are associated with the conflict between Purukuparli and his brother Taparra, the Moon Man. Diamond and curved motifs are linked to female symbolism, though ultimately each pole represents the totality and complexity of Tiwi cultural identity.
