Artist Statement: "Two ladies named Kura and Nambri went together on a fishing trip along the Sepik River. After they caught some fish, Kura decided to drop Nambri off at the river bank and promised to return to pick her up. Long hours went by as Nambri sat and waited for Kura's return, but she was nowhere to be seen. Nambri began to worry about how she would get home. She cried and cried, hoping someone would come.

"Then a turtle appeared out of the water and offered to assist Nambri, who sent it to the village to get help. The turtle quickly went to a nearby village and ask the first person he saw for a favour. The man refused and protested that he had to finish building his canoe. Nambri sat and waited. When a fish showed up later, she asked him to do her the same favour. The fish said he had other things to do first and left. After some time, a crocodile appeared, but Nambri didn't want to ask for help again and told him to leave. The crocodile dove into the river and reappeared as a man. They left together to an unknown place. On the way, they caught two rare-looking birds and decided to keep them as pets. Nambri and the man settled at a place and built their shelter. The man left two days later and returned to the river. Nambri soon realized that she was left alone again, but this time she had two birds with her.

"Time passed; the two birds grew bigger and bigger. Nambri sent the birds out to catch fish from the river, and to hunt for other food sources as well. One day the birds became so greedy that they ate all the fish themselves and left Nambri the bones. She became angry at them and asked them to leave, and to never to return again. The two big birds refused her request; instead, they chopped off her head and dropped it into the Sepik River..."

- Lucas Tangun, translated by Ake Lianga

$6,000.00 CDN

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