Beyond the Future: Papers from the Third Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art

sheets, curtain material and bits of wal lpaper as supports for their art because no canvas or art paper was ava ilable; others regretted that they had nothing to show because they had neither canvas nor paints. After an artwork has been created and somehow found its way into an exhibition, let's say in Sydney, it will have to face a critique. But here we are going to run into problems of not speaking the same language of art. Engl ish (or French} is a second or even th ird language for many Pacific Islanders; likewise what the artists have learnt of the concepts and conventions of western art may give them a second visual language to explore and apply to their forms of expression . The primary language of artworks by ind igenous people comes from the core culture of the artist. This informs every choice of material, process, techn ique, colour, symbol and metaphor that the artist has drawn together in the creation of his or her artwork. As well , as is apparent with the selection of this APT, artworks may be collaborative; artists may use performance or spectacle to physically involve the aud ience with an experience generated by the work. Many non-indigenous observers and commentators tend to concentrate on what to them are the obvious links to western art forms and ignore, or are ignorant of, the wealth of source material from the artist's indigenous heritage. Until indigenous culture is recognised as fundamentally important to these artworks, we wil l not understand or really appreciate what is being offered . As Karen Stevenson commented , 'the label "Pacific" is both elusive and banal'. 1 It is plagued by questions of 'trad ition', 'identity' and 'gender', while other types of work under the generic term 'Pacific art' may be rebuffed as being 'reproductions', 'tourist art' or 'craft'. The task of artists to negotiate their way out of these stereotypes and classifications is daunting. The 'Shrines for the next millennium' project, created for the Third Asia-Pacific Triennial , reveals some of the tendencies in contemporary art from the Pacific region . In a way, all of the 'Shrines' are a collaborative work - the artists conceived their particular 'Shrine' knowing that it would be one of a su ite of important works that would give the Pacific a more tangible presence in this APT. 'Shrine' is a name chosen to embody complex understandings of memorials to war, death, ritual and sacrifice. It also refers to sacred sites, whether dedicated to deities or ancestor spirits. In creating their 'Shrines', the artists have reflected on past and present monuments sign ificant to the fundamental beliefs and values of Pacific peoples and have created shrines appropriate to their present circumstances . These may become memorials for future generations. Shrines exist in all cultures. There is often an interaction between t h e shrine and the visitor - it may be a prayer or a pilgrimage, an evocation of personal and shared memories, or simply respect and contemplation. There is often an act, or a gesture of personal sign ificance accompanying a visit, l ike lighting a candle or leaving a flower. Shrines may be the sites for periodic rituals, rites or festivals. All of these aspects are present in one or other of the works comprising the 'Shrines for the next m illennium' project. While the 'Shrines' are a gesture to the universality of the human condition , each one arises from a particular insight into the circumstances of the people of the contemporary Pacific. Tulana mahu (Shrine to abundance), constructed within a shipping container by members of the Tahiono Arts Collective of Niue, juxtaposes sacred and secular objects, global influences and local content. Via the sh ipping container, Niueans send and receive food, clothing and other consumer goods . But the contai ner contains a sanctuary to N iuean gods also responsible for the prosperity of the island. Michael Mel and Lawrence Purtang propose a new cult for the next m illennium with the 'Shrine' Cargoes. Phenomena described as 'cargo cults' occurred in Melanesia following initial contacts between ind igenous people and Europeans. Anthropologists and other European observers considered the shrines created by 'cargo cults' to be a lust for material goods and attributed a disturbed psycho-rel igious state to the cult's adherents. 2 Mel and 55