Archives: Art For Sale

Art For Sale

A Superb Old Vanuatu War Club Pentecost Island Vanuatu ( New Hebrides)19th Century

A Superb Old Vanuatu War Club Pentecost Island Vanuatu ( New Hebrides) 19th Century

This beautiful old Club is from Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. Carved from a single piece of hardwood into an elegant elongated leaf form. The is an upraised medial ridge from the tip of the club to the start of the handle and an unusual section of carving that would almost certainly have a specific meaning known only by the old men who owned them. The conical-shaped butt is wrapped with a human hair string undoubtedly so your hand won’t slip when sweaty.

This elegant paddle-shaped club is a rare type that, according to Felix Speiser, was found only on Pentecost Island. (Speiser, Ethnology of Vanuatu: an Early Twentieth Century Study, Honolulu, 1996, p. 207). The raised form carved on the blade and the sharp, striking edge that projects from one side of the head are characteristic of the style. Here the rippled surface of the wood lends the club an organic, leaf-like quality. Human hair is wound around the pommel, presumably to improve the grip when wielding the club.

In my opinion, this is the most beautifully shaped club out of the many types made in Vanuatu, even in comparison to other Pacific Islands Club types it stands out aesthetically.

I went to Pentecost Island to see the ” Land Divers ” in 1987, this ceremonial diving off a huge tower with vine ropes attached to your ankles is part of the initiation into a secret men’s society where over one’s lifetime you can keep obtaining a higher grade in the secret society. Each Island in Vanuatu has its own graded secret societies.

During the Land Diving ceremony, there were old men dancing & signing & carrying very old clubs, I asked about the old clubs and none of them were for sale, these are important ceremonial objects of prestige &  were family heirlooms. I saw mostly the domed-shaped clubs with nobs but none of this rarer type listed here.

The club dates from the late 19th Century and it has a deep old patina from long handling.  The club is in very good shape for its age and there are no restorations. The club was likely collected in the late 19th Century which means the club could be significantly older.

I have many 19th Century Oceanic Clubs for sale from my collection 

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of New Guinea Oceanic and Vanuatu Art

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY showing many of the exhibitions i have been involved with around the world in the past 40 years   https://www.oceanicartsaustralia.com/about/exhibition-and-publications/

I have artwork for Museums and art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery. I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specializes in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbors.

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us.

A Fine Old Mumuye Figure Benue River Valley Region Nigeria Africa

A Fine Old Mumuye Figure Benue River Valley Region in Nigeria West Africa

This fine older and used Mumuye Figure is from the Benue River Valley Region of Nigeria Africa. This figure does not depict ancestors but rather incarnates tutelary spirits. The figures have many functions both ceremonial and used by traditional healers.

These bold forms of Mumuye Sculpture appeared alongside modern Western artworks in William Rubin’s 1984 exhibition at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, ‘Primitivism’ in Twentieth-Century Art, and again when the theme of juxtaposition was reprised exactly a quarter-century later in the Foundation Beyeler’s own Visual Encounters: Africa, Oceania, and Modern Art.

A Mumuye figure in the British Museum that once attracted Henry Moore, on p.105 of Notebook no.3 of 1922-4 (the so-called Primitive Art notebook), in which Moore made drawings of many sculptures then on display in the BM. The sculpture again caught Moore’s attention in 1951 when it was displayed in an exhibition of tribal art that formed part of the Festival of Britain.

Again echoing Henry Moore’s cue, the strongest claim to distinctive handling of space in what, since the later 1960s, have been identified as Mumuye figure sculptures were made recently by the art historian Frank Herreman, ‘The use of negative space between the arms and the torso represents the most important plastic feature of a Mumuye figure. Beginning as an artist’s observation about an unfamiliar artwork, negative space has become a characteristic attribute of figures attributed to Mumuye’s ethnicity.

The Art historian Frank Herreman writes “

Negative spaces are not absences but positively delineated, fully present voids. The description feels apt not just for style but more generally for the historical study of Mumuye arts. For over forty years, these three figures constituted the sum of metropolitan evidence for Mumuye figure sculptures, although they were not recognized as such until the late 1960s when a ‘Mumuye style’ was delineated in the context of examples flooding into Europe from Nigeria.

I have collected a few antique African Sculptures based solely on their forms, Mumuye &  & Yaka / Suku Figures from the Congo.  I wanted to see what they looked like next to sculptures from Papua New Guinea & they look great together.

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of Oceanic and African Art

See my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY  showing the Museums and Art Galleries Exhibitions that I provided artworks for over the past 40 years. There is the link to the article about my artworks published in the prestigious Louvre Magazine in 1996

I have artwork for Museums and art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery. I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specializes in New Guinea and Oceanic Art.  Sydney is very close to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbors.

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us 

 

A Superb Old Maori Canoe Paddle Polynesian Art from New Zealand Circa 1860

A Superb Old Maori Canoe Paddle Polynesian Art from New Zealand Circa 1860s 

This very fine old Maori Canoe Paddle or Hoe would date from approximately the 1860s, that was the date given to me by the late DR Roger Neich Maori Art expert & author who worked at the Auckland Museum for decades.

The Paddle is beautifully decorated with incised designs over the entire Paddle Blade on both sides.  There is a pair of ancestors’ eyes on one side of the blade and the finial of the handle has a stylized head in profile (see detailed photos).  The paddle is carved from a single piece of hardwood and is in very good original condition.

The carved spiral designs are so precise and evenly spaced that the artist was a genius master carver & almost certainly there would be other artworks by the same carver in museum collections in New Zealand & the UK.

Canoes or Waka are of great significance to the Maori as that is how they came to New Zealand in their voyaging to new lands from the ancestral home called Hawaiki and the various Maori Tribes recall their ancestor’s arrival by Canoe to Aotearoa (long white cloud) – the Māori name now used for New Zealand

Canoe voyaging implements like paddles & canoe bailers are essential to canoe travel.  Maori artists made some of the most beautiful artworks ever made by human beings.

The Paddle comes with a nice custom made so that it can be displayed on the floor or on a table

Provenance: Old Collection UK and The Todd Barlin Collection of Oceanic & Polynesian Art

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea and Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honored by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY  where there are photos of Exhibitions that I provided the artworks for over the past 40 years.

I have artwork for Museums & Art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specializes in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is close to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbors.

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us.

A Superb Old Maori Orators Paddle Polynesian Art from New Zealand C.1900

A Superb Old Maori Orators Paddle from New Zealand C.1900 Fine Polynesian Art

This fine old Maori Orators Paddle is beautifully decorated over the entire paddle with deeply incised designs; the most prominent part being the front of the paddle blade which depicts two stylized Ancestor Figures and below the largest figure is a partial Manaia figure which is a mythological creature in Māori culture. There are inset pearl shell eyes on the figures and a few other areas of the paddle as seen in the photos.

The back of the paddle blade has two distinct designs; Koru is a spiral shape based on the appearance of a new unfurling silver fern frond at the top and bottom areas and another design that I think might be kowhaiwhai; a Maori house rafter pattern in the middle section of the back of the paddle blade. The shaft of the paddle is fully incised with Koru and other design elements and ends with a Manaia or bird’s head.

When a respected person was speaking publicly, they often held a prop such as an Orators Staff or Orators Paddle which gave the speaker the full attention of the gathering. Maori artists made some of the most beautiful artworks ever made by human beings.

A similarly carved paddle attributed to the Maori Master Carver Tene Waitere (Ngati Tarawhai) and held in the Canterbury Museum collection see Carved Histories: Rotorua Ngati Tarawhai carving by Roger Neich. P. 249. Figure 15.46

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of Oceanic & Polynesian Art

The Paddle comes with a nice custom made so that it can be displayed on the floor or on a table

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time spent collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & New Zealand, Tonga the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See all of the links & photos in my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY and there is the link to the article in the prestigious Louvre Magazine 1996

I have artwork for Museums & Art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specialises in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbours.

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us.

 

A Fine Old Fijian War Club Polynesia 19th Century

A Fine Old Fijian War Club Polynesia 19th Century

This fine old Fijian War Club called Sali is of very good form. The club has incised circular designs on both sides of the club finial and the whole club with deep reddish-brown patina from generations of use.

Made from a single piece of hardwood, trees were grown specifically to be the right shape for a good club. Clubs were not only weapons but objects of veneration that held mana or great spiritual power. This example is likely early 19th Century, as it was collected in the late 19th century and at the time it was already significantly old.  In pre-European contact times, there was always the threat or actuality of fighting between different nearby tribal groups and villages, alliances were made and broken and time of violence was common in Fiji.  This club is in very good condition with only a small chip at the top of the club as seen in the photos, there are no restorations. When you hold it in your hands you can feel a perfect balance and weight that the artist achieved.

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of Fijian & Polynesian Art.

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time spent collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & New Zealand & Tonga and the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See all of the links & photos in my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY and there is the link to the article in the prestigious Louvre Magazine 1996

I have artwork for Museums & Art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specialises in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbours. 

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us.

Two Superb Solomon Islands Ancient Shell Chief’s Ornaments Western Solomon Islands

Two Superb Solomon Islands Ancient Shell Chief’s Ornaments Western Solomon Islands

These two Ancient Chief’s Shell Ornaments are from the Western Solomon Islands. They are likely 200 + years old dating from the 18th Century, they are of the oldest type.

I had several 19th Century Barava or Bokolo or Zaru Chiefs Ornaments over the past 40 years but these oldest & the nicest examples I have ever owned. 

Both Ornaments have double totemic Hornbill Bird Heads at the top of the ornament, the one on the right in the photo has five smaller holes surrounding a central hole and a small part of the lower right corner is missing.

These very important objects were often broken when the Chief that owned them died, it was then placed on their memorial.  

Reference: Barava: land title deeds in fossil shell from the western Solomon Islands by Rhys Richards and Kenneth Roga Te Papa Museum of New Zealand (2004)

Provenance:  The Elizabeth Pryce Collection of Oceanic Art.

The Todd Barlin Collection of New Guinea & Solomon Islands Oceanic Art

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time spent collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See all of the links & photos in my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY and there is the link to the article in the prestigious Louvre Magazine 1996

I have artwork for Museums & Art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specialises in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbours. 

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us.

 

A Superb Solomon Islands Throwing Club from Rennell or Bellona Island 19th Century

A Superb Solomon Islands Throwing Club from Rennell or Bellona Island Polynesian Outliers in the Solomon Islands dating from the 19th Century

See more Fine Clubs in Clubs Gallery

This fine old Throwing Club is from either Rennell or Bellona Islands which are two small islands that are Polynesian Outliers in the Solomon Islands. The Solomon Islands are predominantly a Melanesian county expect a few small islands like Rennell and Bellona which were settled by Polynesian people. Between 2000 and 1600 BC, people belonging to the Lapita Culture made their appearance. Then by Lapita people about 1000 BC. The next settlement occurred on both Rennell and Bellona around 130 BC, with another major occupation in about 1000 AD.  Later settlement of Rennell occurred prior to 1400 AD by Polynesians from Uvea, now Wallis Island.

This superb Club is made from a single piece of hardwood, the final is carved with eight well-balanced pointed lobes, this is the striking section of the club. The club has a very finely braided coconut fibre coir sting that is lashed to the club in an intricate pattern that would have taken great skill & time to make.  The club has a beautiful old dark brown patina

Throwing clubs are well known in places like Fiji, they were kept tucked into a warrior’s belt to be thrown at an adversary if they were running away.  These clubs were thrown with great skill and accuracy, they would stun & knock down the retreating person until the warrior could finish them off often with a larger heavier club.

Provenance: Collected by a Captain on the Melanesian Mission Ship the MS Southern Cross This ship was in service from 1892 to 1902.

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of Solomon Islands & Oceanic Art

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time spent collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See all of the links & photos in my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY and there is the link to the article in the prestigious Louvre Magazine 1996

I have artwork for Museums & Art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specialises in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbours. 

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us.

 

A Superb Old New Guinea Bougainville Island Chief’s Staff Papua New Guinea

A Superb Old New Guinea Bougainville Island Chief’s Staff Papua New Guinea

This beautifully carved Chief’s Staff is from Bougainville or Buka Islands and dates from the early 20th Century. Though Bougainville and Buka Islands are now semi-autonomous areas of Papua New Guinea, culturally they are more related to the people of the Western Solomon Islands which is just a short boat ride away. In previous times people moved back & forth freely between the Western Solomon’s Shortland Islands & Bougainville and Buka Islands.

The Staff is carved from a single piece of wood, the finial is finely carved in the form of an important ancestor figure with an expressive face, the large round eyes and the mouth open as if in a trance state, and below the head is a pair of arms with the hands held close to the top of the figure’s chest. There are no legs and the rest of the staff is covered with finely woven yellow orchid stem bindings.  The top of the staff ends in a phallic-shaped finial.

The Art of Bougainville & Buka Islands are considered to be surrealist masterpieces, the sculptures are the art of dreams combining ancestral images with totemic animals and birds, some of the finest early Bougainville Island Sculptures are in the Australian Museum Collection here in Sydney Australia & were published in “Varilaku: Pacific arts from the Solomon Islands 2011 at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra.

Over the 40 years, I have been collecting Oceanic Art this is the finest Bougainville Chief’s Staff that I have seen outside of Museum Collections. There is a very similar Chief’s Staff in the Barbier Muller Museum in Geneva probably by the same artist as this fine example

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of New Guinea Oceanic Art 

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time spent collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See all of the links & photos in my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY https://www.oceanicartsaustralia.com/about/exhibition-and-publications/

and there is also a link to the article in the prestigious Louvre Magazine 1996 https://www.oceanicartsaustralia.com/art-for-sale/louvre-magazine-june-1996-review-of-exhibition-asmat-et-mimika-d-irian-jaya-april-1996-at-the-musee-national-des-arts-dafrique-et-d-oceanie-paris/

I have artwork for Museums and art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specialises in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbours.

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

A Superb Old Pair of New Guinea Dance Clubs Bougainville Island 19th Century

A Superb Old Pair of New Guinea Dance Clubs Bougainville Island 19th Century

This pair of superb Dance Clubs are from Bougainville or Buka Islands and date from the late 19th Century. Each club is finely carved from a single piece of hardwood, the finials are in the form of a stylized ancestor figure with large eyes, and one of the figures has incised triangular designs on the top of its head.

In both clubs, the figures are double-sided with a mirror image on both sides.

Over the 40 years, I have been collecting Oceanic Art this is the finest pair of Bougainville dance clubs I have seen outside of Museum Collections.

Though Bougainville and Buka Islands are now semi-autonomous areas of Papua New Guinea, culturally they are more related to the people of the Western Solomon Islands which is just a short boat ride away. In previous times people moved back & forth freely between the Western Solomon’s & Bougainville and Buka Islands.

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of New Guinea Oceanic Art 

I first went to Papua New Guinea in 1985 for an adventure & what I found was that I really enjoyed being with the people of New Guinea, over the next 38 years I spent extensive time spent collecting and documenting traditional art & ceremonies in remote areas of Papua New Guinea & West Papua, The Solomon Islands & Vanuatu & the other Pacific Islands countries. During these travels, I made major collections of New Guinea & Oceanic Art for major Museums and Public Art Galleries

I was honoured by being in the prestigious Louvre Museum Magazine for the collections I made for The Museum of African & Oceanic Art Paris in1996 (now the Musee Quai Branly) for the exhibition “Asmat et Mimika d’ Irian Jaya April 1996 At THE MUSEE NATIONAL des ARTS D’AFRIQUE et d’ OCEANIE, Paris

See all of the links & photos in my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY and there is the link to the article in the prestigious Louvre Magazine 1996

I have artwork for Museums & Art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery.  I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com  where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specialises in New Guinea & Oceanic Art. Sydney is just a couple hours’ flight to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbours. 

 

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

A Superb Collection of Antique African Hunting Flutes & Whistles West Africa & Congo

A Superb Collection of 30 Fine Antique African Hunting Flutes & Whistles 

This collection of African Hunting Whistles & Flutes was made over the past 40 years of collecting, I was fascinated with the different unique forms of these small-scale artworks.

This collection shows the various forms that these beautiful objects come in, they are used in many parts of Africa both for magical and ceremonial purposes and for hunting in the bush where hunters secretly communicate with each other when using them.

The hunting whistle was used for sending messages using locally agreed signals, similar to the use of drums elsewhere. Though limited in tone, coded signals could convey numerous types of messages to the fields, the forest, another village, the market, a funeral a dance, or a fight. The time of day, arrivals, and departures of friends or enemies could all be signalled. A hunter, equipped with bows, arrows, quivers, and whistles might join groups of men and women from other villages for both hunting and fishing. Hunting was easy as there was plenty of game around.

This whistle implies an anthropomorphic form while retaining the shape of the utilitarian whistle. There are numerous variations on this particular style in which the basic form remains while the angle and shape of the ‘arms’ and ‘shoulders’ vary from strong geometric lines to gentle curves. The ‘head’ or embouchure also varies in size and form. On some whistles a carved human head is the only human feature on an otherwise geometric body.

The geometric outlines of the whistles are repeated in many aspects of everyday life amongst the Gurunsi peoples; for the Nankani the distinctive angular and straight-lined designs symbolize women as child bearers and nurturers. The symbolism is emphasized by using the designs on a range of domestic surfaces such as pottery, basketwork, internal walls, and furniture decorations. Similar designs are used for women’s scarification. Decorative art is thus used as a means of reinforcing cultural beliefs and local ethnic identity.

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of African Hunting Flutes & Whistles

See my new EXHIBITIONS GALLERY  showing the Museums and Art Galleries Exhibitions that I provided artworks for over the past 40 years. There is the link to the article about my artworks published in the prestigious Louvre Magazine in 1996

I have artwork for Museums and art Galleries but also for collectors at every stage of their collecting. I want to encourage people to explore the fine art of New Guinea & West Papua and the Pacific Islands and to be able to see and touch the artworks in a relaxed and friendly manner in my Sydney Gallery. I would like to invite you to visit my gallery and see the artworks in person and also look at my website www.oceanicartsaustralia.com where there are many Galleries & Sub Galleries to explore.

My Gallery of nearly 40 years is the last physical gallery in Sydney that specializes in New Guinea and Oceanic Art.  Sydney is very close to New Guinea & the Pacific Islands where all of these amazing artworks came from, Australia’s closest neighbors.

If you have a similar “object” for sale please contact me for the best price and honest advice by a Government approved valuer 

To see many more rare items and the finest masterpieces, please make an appointment with us to visit the gallery.

For all inquiries, please contact us