Alcheringa Gallery
665 Fort Street
Victoria, BC, Canada
TEL: (250) 383-8224
FAX: (250) 383-9399
email alcheringa
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MASTERCARVERS OF YAMOK VILLAGE, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
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I'm told that in the forties a female anthropologist was carried into Yamok territory
by litter. My first visit to Yamok was 40 years later and the terrain had not changed. It was then and is still a challenging and difficult trek from the Sepik River through swamp and humid mosquito infested rain forest.
But over the past few years with the increased ability to travel by canoe with sometimes the aid of an outboard motor, coastal towns such as Wewak have become occasionally accessible. There, imagery from newspapers and television has penetrated the artists' consciousness. Inevitably the works from the carvers of this region reflect the world that they now find themselves a part of. In the several hamlets that comprise Yamok can still be found the traditional ancestral hornbill with both bird and human characteristics, but as well there are myriad other forms, birds of paradise, hummingbirds as well as comical renditions such as the one illustrated here carved by Jerry Kiang, one of the most imaginative artists in the region. In Family of Three, the work of young artist Timothy Yupy, the mother is wearing a skirt as would be the case in village life today. On the other hand there is a conscious effort by some mastercarvers to revive old forms, some of which have not been carved for many years. The hamlets of Yamok are joyful places these days and the artistic traditions continue to enrich the lives of its people as they always have.
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September 16th - October 10th
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