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Australian Museum: Bilas

24/05/2023

Image: Baining Nature Powa, 2014. © Wylda Bayrón

Bilas: Body Adornment from Papua New Guinea

Opening 9 June 2023, featuring photographs by Wylda Bayrón.

  • Special exhibition Opening Friday 9 June
  • Buy tickets $22.50 – $25
  • Museum Map Exhibition Hall, (Access via Upper Ground)
  • Audio Guide Listen to the guided tour: coming soon

Witness the beauty and diversity of body adornment and decoration from Papua New Guinea in this stunning exhibition featuring photographs by Wylda Bayrón and a selection of objects from the world-renowned Pacific cultural collections of the Australian Museum. Explore the transformation of the human body into a living art form through the practice of bilas and discover rich, cultural practices of the Papua New Guinea communities.

In Papua New Guinea the practice of body adornment is known as bilas, a word from the pidgin language Tok Pisin, and celebrates the intrinsic interconnection of peoples to place and to all things living. Over millennia, different forms of bilas have emerged, fulfilling varied everyday physical, social, and spiritual needs in unique ways. Made from an array of natural resources including shells, feathers and plant fibers, some adornments signify power or prestige, others are for cultural celebrations and ceremonial purposes.

This new exhibition explores the roles and meanings of bilas in all its forms. Delve into the diversity of styles, techniques and materials, and the personal stories and practices. See over 80 examples of bilas from throughout the 21 provinces of Papua New Guinea, including rare and never-before-seen cultural objects. Newly acquired cultural objects will be on display from Laipian Culture Group of Koki (Laiagam District, Enga Province), Yambu Rimbu Culture of Yalu (Kagua District, Southern Highlands Province) and the Maring Glong Culture of Meingik, Koinambe (Jimi District, Jiwaka Province). The exhibition will also feature over 60 breath-taking photographs by Wylda Bayrón from her solo-journeys in Papua New Guinea from 2013 to 2019.

Experience rich practices and culture of one of the world’s most diverse countries in Bilas: Body Adornment from Papua New Guinea.

Book now

Book now
AM Members & Non-Member tickets

Buy tickets for 10+ people
Education and group bookings

Become a Member
For free entry to Bilas

Visitors (including AM Members and children with free tickets) are advised to pre-book their preferred session time in advance to avoid disappointment.

Ticket typePrice
Adult (non-Member)$25
Concession$22.50
Child (3-16)Free
AM MemberFree

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Oceanic Art Society
20 hours ago
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3 days ago
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This giant food bowl is known as “ko’oka” in the Marquesas Islands.
Food was usually cooked in the earth oven (umu) and served in a variety of bowls made of wood, coconut shell or gourd.
The underside of this bowl is decorated with geometric motifs and multiple tiki figures. The inside has a superb shiny brown patina.
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The first mention of decorative work on bowls was indeed made by Fleurieu, who visited the archipelago in 1791 and later by Langsdorff in 1804.
As noted by British scholar Julian Harding, “Early wood food bowls such as this are very rare. The Hooper collection contained only one example (no.397; Phelps Plate 48), compared with 24 Marquesas clubs (u’u) in this collection.

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Large bowl
Marquesas Islands
Early 20th century
Carved wood
Diameter: 27 in. – 68.5cm
Provenance:
Ex Sotheby's Melbourne, 15-16 November, 2005, lot 24
Published:
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SOLD

#GalerieFlak #JulienFlak
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