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The Oceanic Art Book Thread |
JONPAUL
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 12, 2010
Posts: 134
From: Venice, California
|  Posted: 2010-03-19 11:02 pm Permalink
Many have been discussing the need for a single, consistent, go-to Oceanic Art book thread for some time.
After a few recent personal finds and the realization that others were very interested as well, here we go...
I think bigbro summed it up best...
“Research CAN be fun, and...if you were a primitive art connoisseur in the 60’s, you had nekkid chicks
hanging out around your pad.”
While the subject of various Tiki and related books has been approached throughout several different threads...
JohnnyP’s “Reference Books for Oceanic Carving Inspiration”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=26061&forum=7
jtiki’s “Oceanic Art - Books (going to the source)”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=1135&forum=1
Tom Slick’s “Polynesian/Oceanic Culture...Keeping it REAL(image heavy)”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=23526&forum=1
Haole Jim’s “Tiki Books, Commmon and Obscure"
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=34808&forum=1
sputnikmoss’s “Tiki Collector and ID Guide Refernce Books”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=23359&forum=5
teaKEY’s “Read any good books lately [Book Club]”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=20987&forum=5
Patron Zero’s “Tiki Reference Guide Sought”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=29857=1
Jungle Trader's "Book Review Thread"
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=17724&forum=6
Robb Hamel's "Tiki: the real thing library"
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=32953&forum=1
pali-uli’s “Tiki Literature! What are you reading?”
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=35492&forum=1&19
...they tend to get derailed off topic and buried early. There is so much great information, but
sometimes it gets overlooked because it is so spread out.
How about a thread completely dedicated to Oceanic art books and other publications for the bibliophiles
that are interested in them--collections, new or newly discovered publications, recommended reading,
possible trading, requests, reviews, and of course, finds in the wild, etc. Sort of an ‘everything under one
thread’ if you will, relating to Oceanic art books, catalogs, magazines and other printed materials.
NOT Polynesian Pop, collecting Pop Tiki, books solely for specific purposes (ie. carving or painting reference),
comic books, subject-related fiction, or travelogues, etc. And, if something is found in the wild, why not
post it in one thread, here, for easy reference rather than having to hunt through “Tiki Finds.”
Here’s what I’m talkin’ about....
This was included in bigbro’s “Origin of early Trader Vic’s logo Tiki found!” thread...
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=24081&forum=1
Here are some other highlights of the aforementioned threads...
JohnnyP
tikimecula
Paipo
Tamapoutini
 
Creative Chimp
Here's the one that always gets mentioned, The 1946 Museum of Modern Art Arts of the South Seas by
Ralph Linton, Paul S. Wingert and Rene D'Harnoncourt with color illustrations by Miguel Covarrubias
Did anyone ever notice that the subject in Shag's Sepik Explorer is holding this book???
And here's another frequently referenced volume, Pantheon's 1954 Oceanic Art by Herbert Tischner with
the iconic, large black and white photographs by Friedrich Hewicker that usually come up when discussing
PNG drums or the Mauna Loa Detroit Menu...
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?mode=viewtopic&topic=34254&forum=1&start=0
Here are some of the recent finds we made in the wild on our Northern California road trip:
Ethnic Arts Council, ed., Jay D. Frierman, foreword. Art of New Guinea: Sepik, Maprik and Highlands.
UCLA: The Ethnic Art Galleries, 1967.
Hamson, Michael and Richard Aldridge. Art of the Massim & Collingwood Bay. Palos Verdes: Self
Published, 2009.
This is a very interesting self-published paperback--a labor of love, if you will--of long-time Southern
California Oceanic Art collector and dealer Michael Hamson. There is not an abundance of written material
out there on the art of the Massim or Collingwood Bay areas of Northeastern New Guinea, but this one
certainly fills a gap. Most pieces in the book receive their own dramatically photographed, full-page
presentation.
Lincoln, Louise. Assemblage of Spirits: Idea and Image in New Ireland. New York: George Braziller, 1987.
This paperback is essentially the catalog that accompanied the very first United States exhibition of traditional
sculpture from New Ireland at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. For those interested in the malagan ceremony,
this is like dying and going to heaven! It’s just about everything you could want or need to know in a very
thorough and heavily illustrated package.
Gathercole, Peter, Adrienne L. Kaeppler and Douglas Newton. The Art of the Pacific Islands. Washington,
D.C.: National Gallery of Art, 1979.
This inch-thick paperback was produced as a catalog for a 1979 exhibition at the National Gallery of Art,
Washington, D.C., that included many pieces borrowed and assembled from private collections and other
museums worldwide. It’s an excellent illustrated overview of art of the entire Pacific, with some excellent
essays, bibliographic references and very helpful margin cross-referencing to the catalog illustrations.
Dwyer, Jane Powell and Edward Bridgman Dwyer. Traditional Art of Oceania. San Francisco: The Fine
Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1973.
This thin paperback is the Oceania section of the original de Young Museum publication that included
traditional art of Africa and the Americas as well. It presents a very brief overview and highlights of the
collection, including an Abelam ancestor figure gifted by Vic Bergeron and the legendary Trader Vic’s logo
inspired Maori figure.
Rainer, Chris. Where Masks Still Dance: New Guinea. Boston: Bulfinch Pr., 1996.
This is a large format coffee table book of fine art black and white photographs depicting aboriginal tribes
of Papua New Guinea and Irian Jaya. The photographs are absolutely stunning and many of them show the
art in its natural habitat: spirit masks, spirit houses, crocodile canoes, crocodile costumes, wooden effigies,
spirit house posts, war shields, drums, orator’s chairs and more.
Here's one from a recent estate sale
And, here are some of our most prized possessions--a selection of books from Florian Gabriel's personal reference library...
Here's to all the bibliophiles and book nerds out there!!!
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 10601
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2010-03-20 02:25 am Permalink
Wow, that is quite an exhaustive post, JP! A great index of all the previously posted threads here on TC. And thanks for posting the covers of the two main bibles of mid-century Tiki artists and architects again, "Arts of the South Seas" and "Oceanic Art". The importance of these two can not be overemphasized. They were there early enough to get a lot of use.
Could you tell me, because It temporarily has escaped me, WHERE the "Museum of Primitive Art" was?
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abstractiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 29, 2009
Posts: 585
From: Lodi, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-20 09:33 am Permalink
Maybe this is the one you are referring to bigbro.
From Columbia Encyclopedia:
Museum of Primitive Art, New York City, a privately supported institution, established in 1957. It was devoted entirely to the arts of the indigenous cultures of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas and to those art objects related to the early civilizations of Asia and Europe. The museum was founded by Nelson A. Rockefeller. In 1976, the museum closed, and the collection was transferred to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
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bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 10601
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2010-03-20 1:59 pm Permalink
Yep, that's it. The existence of that Museum parallels the Tiki Modern period, and Michael D. Rockefeller went missing in Asmat territory while collecting for it. A victim of The Fever, clearly.
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crazy al
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jun 25, 2002
Posts: 1789
From: CA
| Posted: 2010-03-20 2:49 pm Permalink
nice... i hope the owner of this guy 'devours' some of your suggestions!!
now, stop posting on TC, JP! and make my CD!!! we're coming up on our two year anniversary here in June.... Jezzzzzzz i think JP has the TC Bug!!!!
insane in the membrane.........!
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MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years) 
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6492
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2010-04-10 08:38 am Permalink
This thread made me painfully aware that my reference and inspiration library SUCKED! My only book was this:
Ellis, George. Oceanic Art - A Celebration of Form San Diego Museum of Art, 2009
128 page catalog of the SDMA exhibit, paperback. Beautiful large, color photographs aranged in order of form: figures, bowls, weapons, etc.
So I picked up a few bargains this week on e-Bay:
Wardwell, Allen. The Sculpture of Polynesia The Art Institute of Chicago, 1967
100 page catalog of the 1967 Art Institute of Chicago exhibit and the 1968 New York Museum of Primitive Art exhibit, paperback. All but 2 photos are black and white, many are rather small. Examines the sculpural characteristics of each of the 10 island groups of Polynesia.
Allan, Tony et al. Journeys Through Dreamtime - Oceanic Myth Duncan Baird Publishers, 1999. 144 pages, hardbound. This book is more of an art inspiration rather than an art reference, but it does have lots of well sized color pictures. About half of the book is about Australian Aborigine myths, but the other half is devoted to Polynesian myth and art.
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MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years)
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6492
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2010-04-16 9:38 pm Permalink
Nicholas Thomas. Oceanic Art Thames & Hudson Publishers, 1995. 216 pages, small format paperback, "182 illustrations, 26 in color". This is not a coffee table book with lots of big pictures and little text, but reads more like a text book with small pictures - "A distinctive feature of the canoe is the canoe figureheads. These painted carvings usually bear striking shell inlay in patterns corresponding with ceremonial face painting and shell disks in the ears. One ethnologist reported that the figures figures frightened away sea demons who might otherwise imperil the canoe's occupants, which could conceivably be correct, but possibly only speculation based on assumptions about a magical or animistic 'worldview'..." This is not a bad thing, often images are easy to find but information about the images can be more difficult.
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Zeta
Grand Member (2 years) 
Joined: Feb 13, 2007
Posts: 2032
From: Atlantis/Basque Country/Spain/Mexico
| Posted: 2010-04-18 11:51 pm Permalink
I paid $25 People's Republic of Cambridge dollah for it.
Cheap!
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Zeta
Grand Member (2 years)
Joined: Feb 13, 2007
Posts: 2032
From: Atlantis/Basque Country/Spain/Mexico
| Posted: 2010-07-22 12:35 am Permalink
Solomon Islands Art
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JONPAUL
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 12, 2010
Posts: 134
From: Venice, California
| Posted: 2011-06-03 11:56 am Permalink
Here's one that isn't mentioned nearly enough:
Oceanic Art: Myth, Man and Image in the South Seas. Carl A. Schmitz. Abrams, 1972.
(photo from net)
This honkin' 420 pager is somewhat of a 'bible' in my library.
It's absolutely chock-full of incredible images, many of which are in a "scrapbook" style separate physical photo page glued onto a plain black background.
The book was originally a German publication (ya-vol!), later translated, and had the distinction of utilizing contributing editor Douglas Newton, then curator of the Primitive art department of the Met. OA art nerds would recognize Mr. Newton as being one of the major 20th-century pioneers in bringing popularity and mass consciousness to Oceanic/Primitive art. OA bibliophiles would know him from Arts of the South Seas: The Collections of the Musee Barbier-Mueller, New Guinea Art in the Collection of the Museum of Primitive Art and Crocodile and Cassowary: Religious Art of the Upper Sepik River, New Guinea, among others.
This is not an easy one to find, but if you do--grab it immediately!!!! It's a mind-blower!!!
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TikiVic
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Nov 10, 2005
Posts: 54 | Posted: 2011-06-06 4:06 pm Permalink
Thanks JonPaul...I just ordered myself a copy from AbeBooks.com!
Can't wait to add it to my collection.
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Dustycajun
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 16, 2007
Posts: 3951
From: Santa Barbara, CA
| Posted: 2012-03-03 6:09 pm Permalink
This might be stretching the thread subject a little bit, but I didn't know where else to put this. I got this fun book called Contemporary Carving and Whittling, which is the sequel to the Lets Whittle book by Ben Hunt that was shown in the Book of Tiki.
Some fun projects in the book.
My favorite, the PNG shield which turns into a corner light project.
DC
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Heath
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Dec 31, 2005
Posts: 582
From: Suburban San Diego (The Drawer)
| Posted: 2012-03-14 12:18 pm Permalink
This seemed to be the most relevant place to put this.
If not, I apologize.
A friend sent me this link to Bamboo Work.
I downloaded it as a PDF here.
If you don't want to read it online or download it, it is available on Amazon both new and used.
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Dustycajun
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 16, 2007
Posts: 3951
From: Santa Barbara, CA
| Posted: 2012-03-24 1:30 pm Permalink
Jonpaul,
Wanted to thank you for putting this thread together, it has really inspired me to beef up my collection of reading material. Many of the classics you have listed are available for $5 to $20 on line.
Here is one I found that has some great photos, info and art.
The Art of the Papuan Gulf by Michael Harrison.
You can see more of the book here:
http://www.michaelhamson.com/catalog_10/catalog.htm
The author is selling copies directly on ebay for a discounted price.
DC
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PockyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 556
From: central MA
| Posted: 2012-12-06 09:34 am Permalink
A-HA! I've been digging for a thread like this! Perfect! Fantastic examples and exactly what I've been looking for! Unfortunately my local bookstores do not carry copies of any of the books listed or really any books on Polynesian/Oceanic subject matter. One of the employees didn't even know what Oceanic art is! I'm assuming the majority of these finds have been on ebay and other sites? I was hoping to find a copy or two in person, but so far no luck.
I also apologize for necro-posting, but this is one of the first threads on Oceanic art books that I saw!
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