Different Ways of Seeing
by Jim Elmslie Oceanic art creates fascination on many levels. In this edition of the OAS Journal we look at two quite different ways of seeing traditional artefacts. To Dr. …
The Social Life of Aboriginal Breastplates: Encoded Objects of Colonisation
By Angel Bottaro The preservation of Aboriginal breastplates, with a degree of empathetic imagination, evoke powerful stories of colonisation. The physical weight of the objects around one’s neck and the …
SAWIYANO: Life in the East Sepik Province
Betni Kalk is a professor of Design at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. As the daughter of missionaries, Betni grew up in the East Sepik Province in Sawiyano territory. She …
Aesthetics of New Guinea Art
Lecture by Michael Hamson, Savage Club, Melbourne, 21 October 2017 Introduction Aesthetics by definition are subjective — being one’s response to and appreciation of beauty. That subjective dimension becomes even …
Interview: Dr. Michael Mel
Jim Elmslie talks with the West Pacific Collection Manager from the Australian Museum about his life and the concept he has developed of museums being a Ples Namel– or middle …
Art of the Prince Alexander Ranges at the NGA
by Crispin Howarth The Prince Alexander Ranges in northern Papua New Guinea are home to a number of cultures. The largest group are the Abelam with a population of some …
A Canoe Named Ealamai’iea, or Patience ©
By John Greenshields of Adelaide, South Australia I took this photo of Joseph Ayodila at the Milne Bay Canoe and Drum Festival on Alotau, Papua New Guinea, in 2014. I …










