Papua New Guinea

Arts and Crafts

Papua New Guinea's art forms are as diverse as they are distinctive. In a country where language varies from village to village, it can be expected that artistic expression will differ in style just as dramatically. Pottery, weapons, carvings, basketwork, musical instruments produced by different people in different places, according to their traditional skills and beliefs.

Papua New Guinea artifacts and handicrafts can be purchased from individual artists and retail outlets in towns and villages. The Faculty of Creative Arts - UPNG at Waigani also an excellent source of paintings, pottery and etchings. Artifacts can also be found for sale at most high schools, teachers colleges and galleries./p>

Pottery

The village of Aibom, near the Chambri Lakes, is the only place on the Sepik to specialise in pottery. Aibom pots are noted for their relief faces which are coloured with lime. Pottery is also practiced at Yabob and Bilbil villages near Madang, and among the Amphlett Islanders of Milne Bay.

Bilums

Bilums are natural fibre string bags made in most provinces - although they vary from place to place. They are very strong bags used for everything from storing food to carrying a baby.

Weapons

Most provinces specialise in different kinds of weaponry. Bows and arrows are traditional in several areas. Shields have a decorative and spiritual role just as important as their defensive purposes. The Chambri Lake carvers in the East Sepik region decorate their spears to match their masks. Cassowary bone daggers are also found on the Sepik.

Masks

Masks in Papua New Guinea are mainly used as decoration. They are found mostly along the Sepik River, but also in other parts of the country. The Chambri Lake masks feature-elongated designs with incised brown and white patterns finished in glossy black. At Koroga the masks are made from wood and clay decorated with shells, hair and pig’s teeth. Murik Lake masks are almost Mrican in appearance, and in Maprik they are woven from cane or rattan. Masks are also carved at Kiwai Island, near Dam on the southern coast.

Bowls

The Trobriand Islanders of Milne Bay are famous for their finely carved ebony bowls. Meticulously polished using a pig’s tusk, the bowls are patterned around the rims with fish or turtle ’figures. Wooden bowls are also carved in the Siassi Islands and the Tami Islands, offshore from Lae.

Musical Instruments

Drums are the principal musical instruments. There are two main types - the large garamuts made from a hollowed tree trunk and the smaller kundus which are shaped like an hourglass with a snake or lizard skin stretched over one end. Other instruments include bamboo flutes and pottery whistles and jews harps from the highlands.

Spirit Boards and Story Boards

In the Gulf Province, Gope boards are believed to possess the spirits of powerful warriors, or to act as guardians of the village. Before hunting or war expeditions, the spirits were called upon to advise and protect the men.

Story boards made on the Keram River, a tributary of the Sepik, are a modern version of the fragile bark carvings villagers used to make. The boards illustrate incidents of village life in raised relief.

Basketwork

Buka baskets and trays from Bougainville Island are among the finest in the Pacific. Coarser baskets are also found in the Southern Highlands.

Others

Trobriand Islanders carve beautiful walking sticks, stools and tables, often inlaid with mother of pearl. Shell jewellery is very popular in the coastal towns, particularly Madang and Rabaul. Papua New Guinea is also known for its black coral and turtle shell jewellery. Tapa cloth, made from tree bark, is exclusive to the Northern Province.