Tiwi Carvings & Sculptures

Gallery 2

30 May – 9 July 2014

 

Purukupali by Carmelina Puantulura

Carmelina Puantulura  |  Purukupali

Jap 010567  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 68 cm

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Owl by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Owl

Jap 010537  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 43 cm

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Bima by Maria Jostte Orsto

Maria Jostte Orsto  |  Bima

Jap 010560  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 49 cm

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Water Bird by John Tipungwuti

John Tipungwuti  |  Water Bird

Jap 010556  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 70 cm

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Pelican by John Tipungwuti

John Tipungwuti  |  Pelican

Jap 010541  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 41 cm

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Cockatoo by Thomas Munkanome

Thomas Munkanome  |  Cockatoo

Jap 010550  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 68 cm

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Bird – Takapuni by Bede Tungatalum

Bede Tungatalum  |  Bird – Takapuni

Jap 010553  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 59 cm

Unavailable

Tiwi Masked Owl by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Tiwi Masked Owl

Jap 010558  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 54 cm

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Bima by Maria Jostte Orsto

Maria Jostte Orsto  |  Bima

Jap 010548  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 49 cm

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Water Bird by Michael Munkara

Michael Munkara  |  Water Bird

Jap 010559  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 77 cm

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Owl by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Owl

Jap 010538  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 48 cm

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Water Bird by Mario Munkara

Mario Munkara  |  Water Bird

Jap 010551  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 62 cm

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Bima by Maria Jostte Orsto

Maria Jostte Orsto  |  Bima

Jap 010547  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 45 cm

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Pelican by John Tipungwuti

John Tipungwuti  |  Pelican

Jap 010542  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 40 cm

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Bima by Maria Jostte Orsto

Maria Jostte Orsto  |  Bima

Jap 010561  |  cast bronze  |  height 29 cm

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Purukupali by Cyril James Kerinauia

Cyril James Kerinauia  |  Purukupali

Jap 010564  |  cast bronze  |  height 35 cm

Jinani by Cyril James Kerinauia

Cyril James Kerinauia  |  Jinani

Jap 010565  |  cast bronze  |  height 59 cm

Bima by John Patrick Kelantumama

John Patrick Kelantumama  |  Bima

Jap 010562  |  cast bronze  |  height 47 cm

Tutini by John Patrick Kelantumama

John Patrick Kelantumama  |  Tutini

Jap 010563  |  cast bronze  |  height 61 cm

Bima by Carmelina Puantulura

Carmelina Puantulura  |  Bima

Jap 010568  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 58 cm

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Cockatoo by Thomas Munkanome

Thomas Munkanome  |  Cockatoo

Jap 010549  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 63 cm

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Owl by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Owl

Jap 010540  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 34 cm

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Bird by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Bird

Jap 010546  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 87 cm

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Seabird – Pipe by Bede Tungatalum

Bede Tungatalum  |  Seabird – Pipe

Jap 010544  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 39 cm

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Water Bird by Mario Munkara

Mario Munkara  |  Water Bird

Jap 010552  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 72 cm

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Pelican by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Pelican

Jap 010566  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 61 cm

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Bima by Carmelina Puantulura

Carmelina Puantulura  |  Bima

Jap 010569  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 46 cm

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Owl by Romolo Tipiloura

Romolo Tipiloura  |  Owl

Jap 010539  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 39 cm

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Pelican by John Tipungwuti

John Tipungwuti  |  Pelican

Jap 010543  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 45 cm

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Pukamani Pole by Immaculata Tipiloura

Immaculata Tipiloura  |  Pukamani Pole

Jap 010555  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 48 cm

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Water Bird by John Tipungwuti

John Tipungwuti  |  Water Bird

Jap 010557  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 73 cm

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Pukamani Pole by Tess Tipungwuti

Tess Tipungwuti  |  Pukamani Pole

Jap 010554  |  carved wood & ochre  |  height 70 cm

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Tiwi artists of Melville Island and Bathurst Islands located in the Timor Sea near Darwin, make a distinctive contribution to Aboriginal art, combining a strong tradition of carving with painted clan designs, ceremonies and songs that gives their art its own unique qualities.

Ceremonies have a central place in the culture of the Tiwi people. Each of the ceremonies has its own form, which may vary according to circumstances and time, but all current ceremonies have their roots in past tradition. Two main Tiwi ceremonial events are performed – the annual Kulama ceremony and the mortuary or Pukumani ceremony. The Kulama ceremony is held at the end of the wet season as the yearly celebration of life festival. The ceremony takes three days and nights, starting with the ceremonial body painting, singing and dancing the rituals and feasting on yams.

Tiwi Design artist, Maria Josette Orsto, describes Kulama as “very important to Tiwi. When the rain finishes, the Tiwi start Kulama. Kulama ceremony is good for health, good hunting, initiation and good marriage.”  When Tiwi artists use the strong concentric circle design in their paintings, they are representing the Kulama circle or ceremonial dancing ground.

The Pukumani ceremony is performed about six months after the death of an individual.  “The Tiwi regard the Pukumani as the most important ceremony in a person’s life in the world of the living, and even though the Mobuditi (spirit of one dead) has been released, the person’s existence in the living world is not finished until the completion of the ceremony. To the Tiwi the entire focus of the ceremony is on the person now in the grave”. Jane Goodale, ‘Tiwi Wives’, University of Washington Press, C.1971

By performing the Pukamani ceremony the community sees that the spirit of the deceased departs from this world and goes to the spirit world. Carved and painted totemic poles called Pukamani are made and placed at the burial site during the ceremony. The Pukumani ceremony becomes a public ceremony of grieving and an artistic expression of culture played out through body painting and design, and through song, dance and sculpture.  During the Pukumani ceremony the dances performed reflect the relationship of the participants to the deceased person.

Dancing or yoi is a central part of life and is at the core of all Tiwi ceremonies. Every person has their own Dreaming and inherit their own dance. The Dreaming dance comes down along the father’s line, and the totem or clan dance comes down on the mother’s line. By their nature these ceremonial rites become a wellspring of inspiration for all forms of art created by the Tiwi artists.