Midnight Sun rescued by the sacred sword fish
1979
from the Sail the Midnight Sun series 1979
Medium
earth pigments on wood
Measurements
59.9 × 131.5 × 6.5 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased, 2003
© the artist
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
This panel is the fourteenth in a series of fourteen relief sculptures made in 1979 for the kesawaga (dance drama) Sail the Midnight Sun, at the Raun Raun Theatre, a prominent Papua New Guinean cultural venue. The play was based on a 1973 poem written by activist and artist John Kasaipwalova, while the sculptures are based on a traditional Trobriand Islands story about a culture hero called Yolina, the Midnight Sun, and his adventures. As a series, Sail the Midnight Sun can also be read as a metaphor for Papua New Guinea’s journey to modern nationhood.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Trobriand Islands, Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea
Accession Number
2003.176.14
Departments
Oceanic Bark Painting / Oceanic Painting / Pacific Art
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of The Vizard Foundation