Abelam or Kwanga Sago Spathe Painting

An Abelam or Kwanga sago spathe painting, which was part of the façade of a ceremonial house.

An Abelam or Kwanga sago spathe painting, Papua New Guinea. Paint was a magical substance for the Abelam, giving objects their power and beauty. Anthony Forge notes that "Abelam painting technique is extraordinary because it combines great speed with firm control by the artist", who worked with great boldness, drawing "the sweeping curves characteristic of Abelam design with speed and accuracy." (Forge, "The Abelam Artist", in Freedman, ed., Social Organization: Essays Presented to Raymond Frith, London, 1967, p. 76-77).

Collected by experimental scientist and geophysicist Dr. George Kennedy in the late 1950s/early 1960s, and exhibited and published in “Art of New Guinea: Sepik, Maprik, and Highlands, Ethnic Art Galleries, University of California Los Angeles, 1967, fig. 242. Also illustrated in Michael Hamson’s “Art of the Abelam” catalog of 2015, no. 148, p. 250.

This painting, using the bark of a sago palm tree as its canvas, was part of the façade of a ceremonial house.

Ex. Dr. George Kennedy, Los Angeles;
Ex. Michael Hamson, Palos Verdes.

H 61 ¼ in / 155.5 cm

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