No.1 Neighbour: Art in Papua New Guinea 1956-2016

90 №1 NEIGHBOUR WHICH WAY? Highlander artists Simon Gende, John Suine, Oscar Tawa and Apa Hugo are often referred to as Papua New Guinea’s naive school of painters. They produce artworks full of irony that offer sophisticated commentary on contemporary life, society and politics. Often inspired by newspaper headlines, the works resonate with the acute honesty exercised by Papua New Guinea’s media. Like the media, these artists often look beyond Papua New Guinea’s shores to represent the characters, events and issues playing out on the international stage. Their visions transpose this material — viewed through local idiom and context — into boldly coloured paintings characterised by wit and insight. As well as addressing global news and events, these artists’ paintings respond to local change — increasingly urban lifestyles, the influence of foreign popular culture, and the change generated from participating in a cash economy. The figures of Papua New Guinean women have become popular for exploring these concerns. ‘Disco meri’ paintings — where women are depicted split into two sides with one half dressed in traditional bilas (ornamentation) worn in sing-sing (performance), and the other half skimpily clad, wearing heels, with whitened skin — lament the loss of traditional ways of life, symbolised by women perceived to be attracted to the ways of the colonising white man. Significant events in the history of Papua New Guinea are also depicted. The devastation caused by the tsunami that killed more than 2000 people in Aitape in the East Sepik in 1998 is the basis of a number of paintings, including those by Simon Gende. The helicopter, made famous in the works of celebrated Papua New Guinean artist Mathias Kauage, plays an active role in Gende’s work Aitape Disaster 17 July 1998 A tsunami killed 2000 men, women and children at Aitape in the Sepik area of PNG. Australian soldiers help the injured 1998. Piloted by an Australian, the helicopter airlifts the injured to safety, while soldiers and nurses on the ground rescue and care for others. An Australian helicopter also features prominently in John Siune’s Bikpela pait istap yet long Bougainvil. Helekopt kisim PNG sikereti fos 190 long pait nadpait wantim BRA. Na EMTV man kisim camera igo wantim long helekopta na kisim piksa insait long pait. (There is still a war going on in Bougainville. The helicopter is taking the PNG security force 190 to fight, against the BRA. And, the EMTV cameraman is going with them to get photos of the action as it happens.) 1995. The painting documents the Papua New Guinean defence forces’ use of Iroquois military helicopters, supplied by the Australian Government in the late 1980s, in its conflict with the BRA (Bougainville Revolutionary Army). Ignited by local concerns over the environmental consequences of the Panguna mine and the distribution of royalties, the decade-long conflict (1988–98) claimed the lives of some 15 000 residents of Bougainville, together with many Papua New Guinean soldiers. 1 The Papua New Guinean media regularly reported on the conflict and the concerns over the tactics used by the defence forces, particularly the effects on civilians. In Siune’s painting, the disparity between the technology at the disposal of the two forces is emphasised, as is the need for independent documentation of the conditions on the ground. John Siune, in the guise of the EM TV camera, depicts the BRA in villagers’ clothes, barefoot and largely unarmed, while their better-equipped ‘redskin’ opponents attack in force. 2 1 See Parliament of Australia, Bougainville: The Peace Process and Beyond , 27 September 1999, <http://www.aph.gov.au/parliamentary_ business/committees/house_of_representatives_committees?url=jfadt/ bougainville/bvrepindx.htm>, viewed June 2016. 2 EM TV is a commercial television station in Papua New Guinea. ‘Redskin’ is the name given to other Papua New Guineans by those living in Bougainville. HISTORY PAINTINGS RUTH M c DOUGALL PP.92–3 JOHN SIUNE Bikpela pait istap yet long Bougainvil Helekopt kisim PNG sikereti fos 190 long pait nadpait wantim BRA. Na EMTV man kisim camera igo wantim long helekopta na kisim piksa insait long pait. (There is still a war going on in Bougainville. The helicopter is taking the PNG security force 190 to fight, against the BRA. And, the EMTV cameraman is going with them to get photos of the action as it happens.) 1995 JOHN SIUNE Boi pren na girl Pren Tupela i stap long Port Morsbi city. Tupela lusim pasin bilong ples na kisim pasin bilong wait man (Boyfriend and girlfriend live in Port Moresby City. They leave traditional ways behind and take on whiteman style) 1999