Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Kjellgren, Eric
2007
303 pages
303 illustrations
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Oceania, which includes the islands of the central and South Pacific, covers one third of the earth, an area larger than that of all the continents combined. From the dense rain forests of New Guinea to the spice-rich islands of Indonesia, the tropical archipelagos of Polynesia and Micronesia, and the deserts of Australia, Oceania's peoples have developed hundreds of distinct artistic traditions that encompass an astonishing variety of forms and media. The remarkable imagery of Oceanic art has had a direct influence on many of the most important artists of the Western canon, from Paul Gauguin to the German Expressionists and the Surrealists, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art houses one of the world's premier collections of art from this region. Published in celebration of the opening of the Metropolitan's newly reinstalled galleries for the arts of Oceania, this generously illustrated volume, the first to survey the breadth of the Museum's collection, provides an introduction to the region's rich artistic heritage through more than two hundred masterworks. An overview of Oceanic art and a history of the Metropolitan's collection are followed by informative introductory essays on the major cultural regions of the Pacific. Detailed discussions of the individual objects place these outstanding Oceanic works inn their historical and cultural contexts. Highlights include selections from the Museum's holdings of sculpture from Polynesia and the Sepik region of New Guinea, religious images from Island Melanesia, and Island Southeast Asian textiles. A glossary and selected bibliography conclude this comprehensive volume.

Being With (Être Avec), Roberto Matta  Chilean, Oil on canvas
Roberto Matta
1946
Ancestor Figure, Wood, paint, fiber, pig tusk, cassowary quills, Asmat people
Asmat people
early to mid-20th century
Bis Pole, Wood, paint, fiber, Asmat people
Asmat people
late 1950s
Body Mask (Det), Fiber, sago palm leaves, wood, paint, Asmat people
Asmat people
mid-20th century
Dagger (Ndam Pisuwe), Bone, cassowary feathers, seeds, fiber, Asmat people
Asmat people
early to mid-20th century
Spirit Canoe (Wuramon), Wood, paint, sago palm leaves, Asmat
Asmat
mid-20th century
Bowl, Wood, paint, Asmat people
Asmat people
early to mid-20th century
Shield, Wood, paint, Awyu
Awyu
early 20th century
Ancestor Board (Yamate), Wood, paint, Kamoro (Mimika) people
Kamoro (Mimika) people
mid-20th century
Ancestor Figure (Korwar), Wood, glass beads, Cenderawasih Bay
Cenderawasih Bay
late 19th–early 20th century
Canoe Prow Ornament, Wood, paint, Cenderawasih Bay
Cenderawasih Bay
late 19th–early 20th century
Canoe Prow Ornament, Wood, cassowary feathers, paint, Cenderawasih Bay
Cenderawasih Bay
late 19th–early 20th century
Canoe Prow Ornament (Mani), Wood, paint, Humboldt Bay
Humboldt Bay
late 19th–early 20th century
House Post Figure, Wood, Sentani people
Sentani people
19th century
House Post, Wood, Sentani people
Sentani people
19th century
Bird Head, Stone, pigment, Morobe province
Morobe province
Date unknown
Bird Figure, Stone, Mount Hagen region
Mount Hagen region
ca. 1500 BCE– ?1600 CE
Ritual Board (Wenena gerua), Wood, paint, feathers, fiber, Siane people
Siane people
ca. 1950
Door Board (Amitung), Abanfogop, Wood, paint, Telefomin people
Abanfogop
ca. 1910
Shield (Tiye), Wood, paint, Sanio people
Sanio people
19th–early 20th century
Showing 20 of 199

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Kjellgren, Eric, and Metropolitan Museum of Art, eds. 2007. Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New Haven: Yale University Press.