"This volume is published for the occasion of the Getty's citywide grant initiative Pacific Standard Time: Art in Los Angeles 1945-1980 and accompanies the exhibition Pacific Standard Time: Crosscurrents in L.A. Painting and Sculpture 1950- 1970, held at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles."
Pacific Art in Detail introduces the riches of Oceanic art through astonishing close-up views of rarely seen treasures, allowing behind-the-scenes insight into this vibrant work that no conventional gallery tour affords. Carefully selected pieces from the world-renowned Oceanic collection at the British Museumâe"by artists employing a wide variety of materials and techniquesâe"illustrate such major themes as the role of artistic creation in land and ocean management, political and spiritual power, and connections to gods and ancestors. Jenny Newellâe(tm)s introduction addresses the question âeoeWhat is Pacific art?âe while short texts place each individual object into its cultural context. Handsome photographs of each complete work are displayed alongside these fine details, to allow for intriguing comparisons between seemingly unrelated objects and media. Evoking the hand and eye of the most accomplished Pacific artists and craft workers, past and present, these details spur the creative imagination and serve as an astute introduction to Oceanic collections in museums around the world.
The art of the Pacific Islands is exciting, varied, vibrant and ever-changing. Across the great breadth of the Pacific, artists have always employed a wide variety of materials and techniques to create objects for specific purposes. These have been central to the management of land and ocean, of political and spiritual power, and of connections to gods and ancestors. This book focuses on objects from the domestic to the sacred, from the elegantly simple to the sumptuously ornate, and from the historic to the contemporary. The author draws on striking and colourful examples from the Pacific's major cultural regions: Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia, beginning with an introduction asking 'What is Pacific art?' Each of the beautiful artworks is then explored further through close-ups, allowing intriguing comparisons between seemingly unrelated objects and media. Ideal as a spur to creative inspiration, this beautiful book offers a striking and unusual view of the wide array of Pacific art, evoking the skills of the most accomplished Pacific artists and craftworkers, past and present.
In this comprehensive survey of the art of the Pacific Islands, including the Melanesian, Polynesian, Micronesian, and New Guinean traditions, author Anne D’Alleva explains the significance of these artworks by contextualizing them within each island’s unique culture and practices. In the process, D’Alleva examines the biases of both artists and Western viewers, telling an important history of both people and ideas through a detailed analysis of sculpture, paintings, textiles, dance, jewelry, and architecture. As these nations faced alternating periods of isolation, colonization, and contact with each other and the West, their forms of art were drastically altered to incorporate foreign influences and to develop autonomous identities and cultural independence. Therefore, their artistic practices explore the inherent tension between tradition and modernity within these communities. Ranging from the prehistoric period to the modern era, and accompanied by a timeline, bibliography, and glossary of terms, this book raises important questions for continued debate and study of the art of the Pacific Rim.
Contributors explore the complex relations among Pacific artists, patrons, collectors, and museums over time, as well as the different meanings given to art objects by each.
Includes detailed chapters devoted to each of the five major cultural regions of the Pacific: Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and the islands of Southeast Asia.