Grand Tapa Maro, Humbolt Bay, Lake Sentani, Papua New Guinea - Lot 53

Lot 53
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8000 - 12000 EUR
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Grand Tapa Maro, Humbolt Bay, Lake Sentani, Papua New Guinea - Lot 53
Grand Tapa Maro, Humbolt Bay, Lake Sentani, Papua New Guinea, Melanesia Vegetable fabric, pigments Dimensions: 56 x 134.5 cm. - framed: 70 x 146 cm. This large Tapa is distinguished by the richness and complexity of its iconography and the quality of its drawing. In 1931, the curator of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, François Poncetton, and the gallery owner André Portier, published inDécoration Océanienneonzemarocollectés par Jacques Viot, and testified to their fascination: "These tapas - several of which are fortunately reproduced in color - are beyond our usual measure. They present signs of a writing so subtle, so spiritual, so abstract, that the mind experiences a shock that exceeds the measure of the senses and draws us in. beyond the measure of our senses, leading us to meditations that the cautious would describe as sickly. Perhaps this is not so. We shouldn't fear doubt, and it's undoubtedly proof of the soul's great strength to love piercing secrets. secrets. There is a sensual metaphysics in these lines, underpinned by strange colors, that opens up new frontiers. Let's not hesitate to lean in" (Portier & Poncetton, Décoration océanienne, 1931: 4). Its composition, punctuated by two large fish painted head to toe, is enlivened by plant motifs and various representations of fish. "Each family or clan had its own motifs, handed down from generation to generation and preserved on wooden tablets. Motifs and ornaments seem to have, in fact, mythological origins, as suggested by local stories, in which decorations are often linked to the spirits of ancestors" (HermkensinPeltier,Ombres de Nouvelle-Guinée,Arts de la grande île d'Océanie dans les collections Barbier-Mueller, 2006: 59). Totemic animals are identified with villages and clans, and carry symbolic meaning. Literature: See the former Tapa from the Florence Loeb Collection sold at Christie's on December 3, 2020 (lot 9) for a very comparable work. An important Tapa Maro, Humbolt Bay, Sentani lake, Papua New Guinea, Melanesia. Appraised by Mr. Pierre Mollfulleda, Specialist in Oceanic and African Arts.
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