Archives: Art For Sale

A Fine Old New Guinea Ancestral Spirit Figure Goam River Ramu Area Madang Province Papua New Guinea

This interesting sculpture of an Ancestor Spirit Figure is from the Goam or Misingini River in the Middle Ramu area of Madang Province in Papua New Guinea. This type of figure often has a series of hooks that make up the face but in this example, there is the primary standing figure that has three birdman faces or masks on top of him.

In this sculpture, the genius of the artist and his skill are clear to see. The figure has a good balance with the stacking of the figures and all of the faces appear to be men with incised beards.

This sculpture comes from an ancient tradition of artworks made to connect people to their ancestors & the spirit world. Spirits or mythical beings associated with specific clans whose powers assure the success of agriculture, hunting, fishing, and other human endeavors.

When I bought the figure it had no way to stand independently before it got a custom-made wood stand. The photos above don’t show the stand as they were deep etched.

The figure was collected in the collected in the late 1960s so it has some age, at least 50 years.

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. 

INQUIRE HERE

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 Ancestor Figure Murik Lakes Area East Sepik Province Papua New Guinea

This beautiful female Ancestor Figure is from the Lower Sepik River area in the East Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea. In the form of a younger woman in full health and with a warm happy smile on her face. Standing on a rounded base she is holding her hands to her chest just above her full breasts, she is wearing a grass skirt of a married woman and has a fine shell pendant made from ground conus shell. The whole figure is covered in red Sepik ochre and white lime to highlight her eyes and mouth.

In the Sepik area, each clan had carved figures which is associated with specific ancestors and totemic species. These ancestral and totemic beings are represented by wooden figures kept in the men’s ceremonial houses, these important ceremonial figures each had its own personal name.  Ancestor figures were an important part of a communities spiritual well-being, they offered protection from malevolent forces and help to ensure fertility for gardens growing large yams and taro.

This ancestor figure has been in my home for quite a while now & I never tire of looking at her because she has such brightness and warmth, an optimistic Sculpture

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of New Guinea Art and 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. 

INQUIRE HERE

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 Ancestor Figure Massim Milne Bay Province Papua New Guinea 19th Century 

Massim Carved Wood Ancestor Figure, Milne Bay Province in Eastern Papua New Guinea. Collected in New Guinea by Captain William Campbell Thomson circa 1890’s.

This rare and early ancestor figure is thought to be an image of a handicapped female ancestor , a person that was known to or a relative of the master carver. Often in New Guinea people with deformities were thought to have supernatural powers like a sorcerer or witch.  Finely carved in a naturalistic style the woman with her left arm shorter and an obvious deformity. Her strong facial expression and she has some incised designs on the forehead and down the centre of her body. She looks like she is wearing a hat with small top but it is probably a hair style or headdress.  She is carved from a single piece of hardwood and the incised designs and facial features are highlighted with white lime.

The Massim are well known for other types of  beautiful artworks like their intricately carved canoe ornaments and fantastically imaginative Lime Spatulas.  The Massim are also known for their great maritime skills and a complex trading system called the Kula Ring.  Kula is also the name for certain ornaments & wealth objects like stone axe blades and shell money. These valuables traded purely for purposes of enhancing one’s social status and  prestige. Carefully prescribed customs and traditions surround the ceremonies that accompany the exchanges which establish strong, ideally lifelong relationships between the exchange parties (karayta’u, “partners”). The act of giving is a display of the greatness of the giver, accompanied by shows of exaggerated modesty in which the value of what is given is actively played down. Such a partnership involves strong mutual obligations such as hospitality, protection and assistance.  Kula valuables never remain for long in the hands of the recipients; rather, they must be passed on to other partners within a certain amount of time, thus constantly circling around the ring. However, even temporary possession brings prestige and status. Important chiefs can have hundreds of partners while less significant participants may only have fewer than a dozen.

One must conclude that this is one of the rarest of Massim Figures that were made solely for traditional ancestor worship and spirituality.

 Provenance:

Captain William Campbell Thomson Australia ( 1851 – 1934 )  He collected this figure in New Guinea Circa 1890s 

The Dr Harry Beran Collection Cambridge UK 

The John Freide Collection New York. Most of this fine collection also known as The Jolika Collection now in the De Young Museum of Fine Art in San Francisco 

The Todd Barlin Collection of New Guinea Art and Oceanic Art and Asian Art. 

William Campbell Thomson was born in 1855 in Glasgow, Scotland. Captain William Campbell Thomson’s obituary notes that he commanded A.U.S.N. steamers from 1875 to 1919 most notably, the Arawatta.

During his 44 years of service, he travelled the eastern Australian coast, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Fiji and other parts of the South Pacific. Thomson was a well respected seaman who was the author of at least three publications including “Gulf of Carpentaria”, “History of the N.E. Coast of Australia” and “The Early History of Australia”.

Thomson gathered a very fine collection of items, including items from inhabitants of northern Queensland, PNG and Fiji. Part of the collection, left to one of his daughters, Eulie Round (born Esther Eulalie Thomson), rested in a house in Caloundra, Queensland, from 1935 until it was moved to Brisbane many decades later. The rest of his collection was sold at Pickles Auctions in Sydney Australia on September 5^th & 6th in 1986.

INQUIRE HERE

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 Massim Figure by Master Carver Banieva Milne Bay Province PNG 19th Century

This superb Massim Figure was carved by a known Massim carver Banieva who was also from the Suau area in the Milne Bay Province in the far Southeast part of Papua New Guinea.

In Papua New Guinea where virtually all of the many thousands of Master Carvers remain unidentified Banieva and Mutuaga are rare examples of known master carvers whose work has been admired and collected since the late 19^th Century.

Born in the 1860’s Banieva lived and worked in the Suau District in the Milne Bay province of Papua New Guinea.  Banieva would have known the other famous Massim master carver of that time Mutuaga.  It is a miracle that there is a photo of Banieva caring above this photo is from the book Mutuaga: A 19th Century Master Carver by Harry Beran : Wollongong University Press 1996

Banieva carvings are unique in their stylised representation of ancestor figures, several of his artworks can be seen in the book  Mutuaga: A Nineteenth-Century New Guinea Master Carver: Wollongong University Press 1996 Page 233,  these show the unique style of the incised hands held to the chest. There is also a photo of Banieva at work carving in the same publication on Mutuaga page 215 Plate 49.

We are also fortunate in the extensive research and writings of the art historian Dr. Harry Beran who has studied Massim Art & Culture over 60 years.

This finely carved Janus Ancestor Figure by Banieva is quite unique it shows two men standing back to back on a shared oval-shaped base. both are smoking tobacco in pipes.  I personally love the way the hands are done in a very stylised manner. There is finely incised decorations on the body and base and face and the designs have been highlighted with white lime infilled into the designs.

Figures by Banieva are extremely rare & most are in Museum Collections. This is the only example I have owned or I have seen in private hands.

Some of the finest carvers on the Island of New Guinea came the Massim Culture in the Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. These artists are well known for their amazing Lime Spatulas and Wealth objects but their early figurative art is less well known. In Pre-European contact times the Massim certainly the made and used ancestor figures for traditional use in ancestor worship, soon I will list another Massim Figure that was known collected by Captain Thomson in 1896.

Reference:   Mutuaga: A Nineteenth-Century New Guinea Master Carver: Wollongong University Press 1996

Provenance: The Todd Barlin Collection of Pacific Islands Oceanic and New Guinea and Asian 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. 

INQUIRE HERE

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 New Guinea Massim Figure Milne Bay Province Papua New Guinea

This superb Massim Double or Janus Figure is from the Milne Bay Province in the far Southeast part of Papua New Guinea. This very finely carved double figure is in the form of a squatting figure with hands to the chin. The figures back to back share a base & conical-shaped hat or headdress. The artist’s style is very distinct and recently I was looking at objects online and I saw a figure by the exact same hand it was dated the early 20th Century. I am looking for the photo which I filed and can’t find right now but it is definitely the same artist & it had a early collection date.

Some of the finest carvers on the Island of New Guinea came from the Massim Culture in the Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. These artists are well known for their amazing Lime Spatulas and Wealth objects but their early figurative art is less well known. In pre-European contact times certainly, the made and used ancestor figures for traditional use in ancestor worship, soon I will list another Massim Figure that was known collected by Captain Thomson in 1896.

The well-known 19th Century Massim Art Master Carver Mutuaga was only one of the recognized master carvers. I am going to soon show another important Massim Figure by Mutuaga’s contemporary Banieva who was working at the same time as Mutuaga in his own distinct style.

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. 

INQUIRE HERE

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 New Guinea Shield Telefomin Area West Sepik Province Papua New Guinea

This fine old and well-used Shield from the Telefomin Area in the Star Mountains area of the West Sepik Province in Papua New Guinea.

Among the Telefomin and related groups, their War Shields were considered to be ancestral relics and were kept in men’s ceremonial houses.

The Telefomin are also famous for their carved & painted Ceremonial House Boards and Doors that have designs that are often similar to their Shields. These carvings  were attached to the front of  the Men’s Ceremonial House.  (also see the great Telefomin Door on my website)

The construction of the Men’s Ceremonial House with carved doors and panels also coincided with the eligibility of the house to store ancestral relics like Shields.   The spiritual ‘heat’ of such relics was believed to be a danger to the well-being of women and children so ancestral relics were kept only in men’s ritual houses. In the men’s ritual houses, boys and young men passed through several stages of initiation into the mysteries of the ancestors and the rituals that ensured the growth of the staple crop (taro), the health and welfare of the community, and success in hunting and warfare.

The designs on the Shields were specific to a clan and area specific and the designs had ancestral power, each shield had its own personal name. This fine Shield has deeply incised designs with a central motif and the edge of the shield has a serrated triangular border.  The designs are highlighted with red, white & black ochre.  On the back of the shield, you can see how it was held with a crossed bamboo strap going from corner to corner.

Warfare was widespread among traditional enemies in neighboring areas and alliances were made & broken regularly between different groups. These large rectangular shields were used in battle by two men, one pushing the shield forward and another warrior hiding behind the shield and free to use his bow and arrows with great accuracy.

This shield would date from the 1940’s-1950’s.

Provenance: Collected in the 1960’s by an Australian expat Barry Ison who was working in New Guinea in the 1960’s

The Todd Barlin  Collection of New Guinea Oceanic Art 

References:

Dr Barry Craig is a true New Guinea Art expert who lived in the Telefomin area in the 1960’s.  His Chapter in the Book: ” Shields of Melanesia ” 2005 Chapter: 5.2 pages 117 -124. This gives the clearest information on Shields from this area.

This whole book mainly on New Guinea Shields is one of the best references ever published.

I have been collecting New Guinea Shields since 1983 when I bought my very shield, over the next 38 years I bought the very best New Guinea Shields that I could for my own personal collection; The Todd Barlin Collection of Oceanic Shields.

I helped write three chapters in the most important book on New Guinea Shields, ” Shields of Melanesia ” 2005  edited by Harry Beran and Barry Craig.  

3.1 Shields from the North Coast of Western New Guinea: Pages 28- 32 : West Papua Irian Jaya Indonesia

5.1 The Shields of the Highlands of Western New Guinea : Pages 112- 1117  :  Yali Shields Central Highlands West Papua Irian Jaya Indonesia

6.1 Shields from the Southern Lowlands of Western New Guinea: Pages 155-165 : Four areas of  The Asmat People and Digul River areas.

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. 

INQUIRE HERE

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.