Artist Statement: Nit xalaxala means "marching mask", describing the performance style of this tatanua. Magnificently prominent here is the most characteristic feature of a tatanua: its crest, resembling traditional male hairstyles from an earlier time. Unlike most other carvings connected with malagan, a tatanua may be kept for reuse after a malagan ceremony instead of being sold, discarded, or destroyed. Its crest is fashioned anew in preparation for each use.
For more about tatanuas, see notes for Nit titili and Us.
Nit xalaxala
Ben Sisia
Papua New Guinea
Libba Village, Northern New Ireland
Wood (Alstonia sp.), snail shell (Turbo petholatus), coconut husk fibre, pandanus leaves, black paint (charcoal), yellow paint (yung plant), white paint (lime), earth pigment
25" X 16" X 19"
2008
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