1:44 PM |
Te Papa hangs on to Pacific art
By REBECCA THOMSON - The Wellingtonian
Art conservators have found an innovative way to hang a wall-sized tapa cloth.
More than 120 magnets have been used to hang a 22-metre Tongan tapa cloth for an exhibition at Te Papa.
The tapa cloth, known as Ngatu laumina, is to be displayed as part Paperskin: the art of tapa cloth, an exhibition that brings together a selection of 36 tapa cloths from across the Pacific. The exhibition starts on June 19.
Conservator Rangi Te Kanawa said the large Tongan cloth was very thin so staff did not want to use pins or hooks to hang it.
Instead 120 magnets have been used to hold the cloth in place. "There are two rows of metal plates across the top and central area, behind the tapa, and we attached the magnets along those areas," said Ms Te Kanawa.
"There were about 10 of us. We had to roll it out using two hoists and a step ladder to put it in place."
Ms Te Kanawa said it took the team just over two hours to slowly roll out the tapa cloth and hang it. She was very relieved when the job was done. "I have spent the last two or three weeks wondering how we were going to get it up. It's great to have it up."
The tapa cloth was created for Queen Elizabeth II's visited in 1953 and was used during the 1955 funeral of Queen Salote of Tonga. Te Papa has about 500 tapa cloths in storage. This is the first time a significant number will be displayed.
Paperskin: the art of tapa cloth also draws on collections from the Queensland Art Gallery and the Queensland Museum.
Curator Sean Mellon said the exhibition showed tapa clothes as an art form, rather than as ceremonial pieces. "It's about appreciating tapa as art. We have to understand that people are not used to tapa in its usual context.
"I hope people come away from the exhibition with a greater appreciation of the diversity of the production of tapa cloths and also the really tremendous design, style and aesthetic qualities they have," said Mr Mellon.
The word tapa come from Tahiti and the Cook Islands, but the cloths are known by different names. In Tonga tapa is known as ngatu, in Hawaii it is kapa, and in Samoa it is siapo.
Making tapa cloths is usually women's work. They create the patterned cloth by stripping the inner bark of the tree and soaking it in water overnight before placing it on a wooden log and beating it with a wooden mallet.
Tapa cloth was primarily used for clothing, and now tends to be used for more formal occasions.
The exhibition also includes rare ceremonial masks from Papua New Guinea.
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