Traditional Fijian crafts and their cultural significance

¶ … yaqona bowl" in ceremony. What was it made from, used for?

The yaqona bowl is made from wood and coconut fiber. It has a simple shape and is used to drink yaqona (kava), a plant-based beverage. The act of sharing a bowl of yaqona is thought to create a bond between the participants. (Source: Fiji Guide, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://fijiguide.com/page/4351878:Page:55)

The bark cloth, called masi, made in Fiji. How was it made and colored. When was this cloth used?

The cloth is made from the bark of the paper mulberry tree. The bark is stripped and beaten with clubs, then dried in the sun. Sometimes it is left its natural white color, other times decorated with stencils made from banana or pandanus leaves. Masi is used for ceremonial garments.

(Source: Fijan Tapa Cloth, retrieved March 28, 2013 from http://www.kivu.com/?page_id=3766).

The wooden artwork made in Fiji came from which tree?

The wooden artwork comes from the Dakua tree.

The basketry made in Fiji was made using leaves from which tree?

Baskets are made by weaving together the leaves of the pandanus tree. Sometimes the coconut palm is used. (Source: Fiji Arts and Crafts, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.go-fiji.com/artsandcrafts.html).

The symbolism of natural shapes seen in their artwork. Why did they use shapes from living things?

The art work of Fijians reflects the natural world around them. They are an island nature and live outdoors much of the time. Shapes from nature are what they see.

The royal family in Fiji wore masi / bark cloth using which colors?

They wore white, or a tan made by toasting the cloth over a fire made with sugar cane.

What did the Fiji Islanders use the Pandanus leaves for, in their daily life?

Women wove baskets with the pandanus leaves; the baskets varied in shape according to the purpose for which they were intended. They are now a popular item with tourists. Today, most Fijian homes use pandanus-leaf mats for floor coverings, dining mats, and sleeping mats.

(Source: Fiji Government Online Portal, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&id=645&Itemid=196).

The ceramic artwork of Fiji is made water tight using what material?

Ceramics are waterproofed by being "varnished" while hot from the firing by rubbing them with resin from the kauri pine. (Source: JustPacific, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.justpacific.com/fiji/fijianart/amelepots.pdf

The early boats in Fiji were styled after what?

The early boats were rafts made from bamboo. (Source: Fijihosting, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.fijihosting.com/bulaman/fidschi/fijioldphotos.htm. Later, boats that looked like canoes were used.

When a chief died in Fiji, how did people transfer his power? What was used in the ceremony where his power was transferred?

Family is very important in the Fijian culture, so a deceased chief was replaced by a member of his family, though not necessarily an immediate family member (ie, son or daughter). The drinking of yaqona is part of the ceremony.

Are the people of Asia, Fiji, Africa, India, Europe linked by artwork?

Yes, the people are linked because their artwork represented what they knew. They used materials they found locally and represented religion and nature in their work. Some pieces were purely decorative, while others were utilitarian.

What material was used to create black for the stenciling of masi or bark cloth ?

Black dye was made from soot collected from the burning nut of a candlenut tree, mixed with a solvent such as kerosene. Black could also be made from the burnt tree resin of the dakua tree. (Source: Babasiga, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://babasiga.blogspot.com/2007/01/fijian-and-tongan-barkcloth.html).

How is the ceramic pottery in the Fiji Islands fired?

Pottery is air-dried for several days, then fired for an hour in a fire made from brush, reeds or coconut fire. It is not glazed, except when plant materials are used (as discussed above) to enhance water-holding qualities. (Source: Fiji Guide, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://fijiguide.com/page/4351878:Page:60

Short answers and True / False questions

What role did the coconut tree play in the history of the Fiji Islands, in their artwork, and lifestyle.

Does Aborigine Artwork convey any political theme or meaning?

Contemporary Aboriginal art is a means of preserving a culture that white men long sought to erase. As so poignantly shown in the 2002 film Rabbit Proof Fence, children called "half-caste" were taken from the Aboriginal mothers and transported thousands of miles away to be raised as white children. The Australians viewed the Aborigines as inferior race that was going to eventually die out. The artwork shows the Aborigines have their own rich culture and will not be eradicated.

What is the Rainbow Serpent, as seen in Art of the Aborigine? How important is this serpent to their culture? What are his/her attributes?

The Rainbow Serpent is associated with ceremonies about fertility and abundance, in addition to the organization of the community and the keeping of the peace. Paintings of the Rainbow Serpent first appeared as rock art more than six thousand years ago. The female Rainbow Snake is the mother, the original creator being, and the male is the transformer of land. The Rainbow Snake is depicted as a mythical creature comprised of parts of different animals. (Source: Aboriginal Art Online, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.aboriginalartonline.com/culture/rainbow.php).

Does the ancient display of handprints appear anywhere in the artwork of today's Aborigine artists?

Handprints were a traditional motif in cave paintings, and they remain popular with contemporary Aboriginal artists.

According to legend among the Aborigine, how were land formations made in Australia?

Land formations were made from characters that were usually shape changers. They became human or some other living species and left their spirits in the place where they emerged.

Can you name any tools, or any artwork in Australia that clearly has ties to ancestors in Africa?

Using DNA evidence, scientists have confirmed that Australia's earliest settlers came from Africa. An increase in the abundance and complexity of Austrlian tools after 10,000 years ago, and the arrival of the first domesticated dogs also suggests extensive migrations from Africa to Australia. (Source: Natural History Museum, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.nhm.ac.uk/about-us/news/2007/may/news_11665.html). This is particularly true of blade tools, which were used earlier than once thought.

In Australian Aborigine "dot painting" what do the concentric circles represent?

Concentric circles represent camp sites, watering holes, or other places of significance.

(Source: Aboriginal Art Culture and Tourism Australia. Retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://aboriginalart.com.au/gallery/iconography.html). The concentric circles could also represent a corroboree place, all or part of a person, the stem of a tree, the center of a food plant, or a natural feature such as a hill. (Source: National Museum of Australia, retrieved March 28, 2013 from http://www.nma.gov.au/collections/highlights/papunya-collection).

Lines that connect large circles in Aborigine "dot paintings" are made to represent what? What is the name for these connecting lines? Are dot paintings unique to the Aborigine people?

The lines are called Journey Lines. They represent the wanderings of Aboriginal ancestors during the Dreamtime, or Dreaming. (Source: Aboriginal Art Online, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.aboriginalartonline.com/culture/dreaming.php). Dot paintings are not unique to the Aboringines. French artist Georges Seurat, a post-Impressionist, famously used dots in his technique dubbed "pointillism" in a well-known painting titled A "Afternoon the Island of La Grande Jatte." Seurat used thousands of tiny dots of color; the eye blends them to see other colors and defined shapes.

The Aborigine artist Erna Motna paints using symbolic images from his spiritual life, called The Dreaming. What does The Dreaming mean?

The Dreaming describes the relations and balance between the spiritual, natural and moral elements of the world. It describes a period from the origin of the universe to a time before living memory or experience. (Source: Aboriginal Art Online, retrieved March 29, 2013 from http://www.aboriginalartonline.com/culture/dreaming.php).