Adventures on the tapa trail
One woman’s mission to promote tapa art
“Ifell in love with the country as soon as the plane door opened and the wall of heat and humidity hit me,” says Joan Winter. The Pacific arts curator first arrived in Papua New Guinea as an exchange student in 1972 and has worked since as a teacher, researcher and founding director of a major museum in Milne Bay.
Often travelling alone, she’s lived in villages around the country and counts her ‘adoption’ by three families from different communities among the highlights of life in PNG.
“In a previous time, I would have been an explorer,” she says. “I’m an adventurer and take risks.”
Her latest adventure has involved arduous bush treks in Oro Province, to help a remote community of Omie tapa artists export their unique bark-cloth paintings.
As the founding director of the Massim Museum and Cultural Centre in Alotau, Winter had heard about the Omie masters and longed to make contact with them.
The opportunity came after she left the museum in 2017 and went to see her goddaughter, Rahab, who lived near the track to the seven main villages in Omie territory.
“Rahab’s family helped set up a visit and offered to walk me in,” says Winter.
The trip involved a bumpy truck ride from Popondetta to the end of a rutted rocky track, then a punishing two-day hike on mountain trails to Savodibehi village.
“I needed two young men on either side helping me and another one pushing me up the steep muddy trails. We often had only half a foothold.”
“I’m 68 and still did it, despite arthritis. At one point, I told myself, I’ll never try this again. But I did and I will!”
Winter’s reputation as a champion of PNG culture preceded her. Hundreds of villagers gathered for a traditional welcome, complete with singing, dancing and a specially prepared meal of bandicoot and eel.
“I told them: ‘I love tapa, so I have come to see yours’,” she says. “During the visit I learned how individual tapa pieces had already been sold overseas, but the artists were not properly paid or credited for their work.”
Winter agreed to contribute her experience and contacts as a curator to set up the community-owned Omie Cultural Business Group.
“The Omie believe that the way out of poverty and isolation is by exporting their art,” says Winter. “I organised workshops in budget management, business structure and cataloguing to ensure they get an equitable return from future sales of tapa.”
Omie tapa is made from the inner bark of rainforest fig and banyan trees as well as the paper mulberry tree. Paint dyes come from various roots, bark, leaves, fruit, seeds and nuts. Dyes also include combinations of natural plant materials, ash and water.
The tapa’s artistic designs are based on the natural world. Works are alive with grub eggs, beetle homes, insects, hornbill beaks, teeth, feathers, lizards’ jaw bones, the tail feathers of swift birds and even the stars and the moon.
The Omie region lies close to Kokoda in the foothills of Mount Obo and slopes of the Mount Lamington volcano, Huvaemo. Both are considered sacred sites.
Known as nioge in the local language, Omie tapa also has sacred associations.
“Nioge is part of one of the first creation stories and so is very important to us,” says Omie leader Biriso Sirevevo.
“In the main story, the first man, Mina, and first woman, Suja, arrive on a flat plain. As they make love, Mount Obo forms under them. Suja goes down to the river, finds the right tree, as directed by Mina. She beats the first tapa to wear, before she can return to live with her husband.”
Tragically, the lives of Mina and Suja’s descendants were devastated by the deadly effects of World War 2 and its aftermath. Many young men left their villages to seek work elsewhere.
Mount Wellington’s volcanic eruption in 1951 further disrupted traditional life in the region. Thousands died and were made homeless, while the flames, dust and ash also damaged the environment. As a result, fewer young men could participate in the Ujawe initiation ceremony, integral to Omie culture.
After the eruption, the leaders decided their mountain was punishing them and they needed to return to more traditional customs.
One way was to give women access to cultural knowledge previously restricted to men. This opening expanded the range of iconography women used in their production of tapa, helping it evolve into the vibrant art form collected today. Works by artists such as Lila Warimou and her brother Rex are on display at the Queensland Art Gallery.
The Omie have decided to produce three grades of tapa: major works for international exhibition by museums and galleries; smaller pieces for sale to targeted markets; and smaller items such as bags, hats, belts, document folders and business card holders.
To set up an eco-tourism trade, the community has already built a small museum, plus two traditional guesthouses for intrepid visitors and potential tapa buyers.
Winter is now based in Brisbane, Australia, with a home gallery showcasing Omie tapa. Appointed the business group’s international representative, she’s travelling Europe to arrange exhibitions.
A showing next year has already been scheduled for London’s renowned Rebecca Hossack Gallery, which promotes non-Western artistic traditions.
The gallery circuit is a break from the physical hardship of visiting remote villages, but Winter says she’s determined to help Omie artists and their community flourish.
I needed two young men on either side helping me and another one pushing me up the steep muddy trails. We often had only half a foothold.