Omie
The Barkcloth Art of Omie

A little more than a year ago, David Baker and Drusilla Modjeska visited me at Annandale Galleries carrying with them a roll of barkcloth they had brought back with them from a number of previous visits to Oro Province in Papua New Guinea. They had come with the knowledge that the Gallery was open to new ideas about contemporary art and also at the suggestion of some artist and collector friends of theirs, including Janet Laurence and Jo Bertini, that perhaps I might be open to the notion of an exhibition. They were not to be disappointed as I was absolutely taken aback at the quality of the work they showed me.

The design, colours and above all the quality of this art is an eye opener for me and another example of the quality of art being produced in sometimes remote areas of the world that has so far largely escaped public attention and critical acclaim. The barlcloth works of the Omie women are dazzling to the eye and nurturing for the mind and heart. Some of the works bring to mind Aboriginal art or perhaps Afghan carpets, some of the more austere ones an almost minimalist and urban ethic. The truth is these influences are unlikely to have been experienced at all by the Omie artists, rather their suggestions come from our own minds and experience. As in all art of quality, the work acts as a platform from which we may build on our past knowledge and in the process discover something new and exciting which, if deeply experienced, may change to some degree how we look at all art. Our own creativity as viewers lies in the act of looking and the result is an amalgamation of past knowledge and experiences that we refer to as our own personal ?taste?.

Annandale galleries are known for modern and contemporary overseas art, mainstream white Australian art and Aboriginal bark and sculpture from Arnhemland. Perhaps in New York or London we would be considered to ?lack focus? with what appears as such a diverse range of interests. However, there is a ?method to the madness? if you will in that what concerns us most is not where something comes from but the quality of the work in question. Is it collectable work that adds something of value and substance to the passions of our collectors? Is it of interest to the museums and galleries here and abroad? Does it engage with the galleries other artists and exhibitions? Most of all, do we personally engage with the work and feel a passion for it? Without that there is little chance of communicating anything of substance to our public. While these may seem rather broad criteria, I can assure you that we do not embark on any new projects without careful consideration of the above questions. This exhibition of the work of the Omie women satisfies all of the above criteria and works have already been earmarked for the National Gallery of Victoria.

As in Aboriginal art, the iconography and the stories on which the art of the Omie women is based comes from a long history of ancestral past and ceremonial ritual. The work comes from a sacred source in which their belief and social systems are inextricably embedded. Also, like the Aboriginals, they are never at a loss for subject matter - something which any contemporary western artist faced with a blank canvas will tell you is a blessing indeed. As Kandinsky wrote in 1911 ? a blank canvas is a very beautiful thing and the challenge is to improve on it.? Through their kinship rules and social hierarchy the Omie know precisely what to paint on these barkcloths. The work after all springs from, and is still used for, utilitarian purposes in both ceremony for decoration and power and day-to-day life as clothing. What separates one artist from the next is their interpretation of the knowledge they have of the timeless designs, the focus they choose to follow and the flow of their own emotions as they go about the process of producing the work. This comes following a long period of apprenticeship that Drusilla Modjeska points out in more detail in her essay in her essay. The Omie ?pathways? are not dissimilar to the outline design laid down in Aboriginal bark painting by artists with the knowledge and the right to the dreamings. In Aboriginal bark painting these designs are done before the ?rarrk?, or crosshatching, is applied and cannot be done without a long period of assisting other artists who have enough knowledge. Only after this period of apprenticeship may an Aboriginal artist apply their own interpretation of the stories; it is the same for the Omie women. The extraordinary variety of styles in the works attest to the requisite knowledge and experience these women have and the underlying freedom it provides for them to express themselves in a personal manner while retaining the power of the spiritual ?pathways? from which the work is based.

The art of Lofty Bardayal Nadjamerrek, who is exhibiting alongside the Omie women in another gallery at Annandale is an art that is similarly grounded in tradition and ancient clan designs and songs. Indeed, the cave walls where Lofty did his first paintings as a teenager are full of references to the Mocassans, a people who travelled as fishermen from Indonesia across to Arnhemland several hundred years ago. The connection therefore to the art of the people of New Guinea and our own artistic heritage is not perhaps as distant as we may imagine, especially given the inarguable influence our own Indigenous art has had on Australian mainstream practice. Like Lofty, the Omie women have a crucial contact with their immediate surroundings from which they gain the spiritual succour that gives meaning to their lives. This shared concept of connection to specific country as an element for achieving universal value is something not gone unnoticed in the west and the great modern artist Joan Miro maintained that an intimacy with place was essential to producing work that could communicate on a grand scale. The work of both the Omie and Lofty, if viewed leaving our often-limiting preconceived notions at the door, resonate with something inside us and draw out aspects of our spiritual and emotional make up which too often lie dormant or go unnoticed. They wake us up to possibilities in life and art and provide us with inspiration, knowledge and renewed vigour.

The great architect Jean Nouvel, designer of the Institute du Monde Arab, the Fondation Cartier and the driving force behind the choice of the Aboriginal art commission that is a permanent feature of the new Quai Branley museum in Paris, discovered Aboriginal art through his friend the renowned avant-garde filmmaker Wim Wenders. Both men refer to art that springs from origins such as Aboriginal or the Omie as ?art from living traditions?. In other words ? this is contemporary art.

Perhaps the descriptions of the Omie?s practices bring to mind the words 'tribal art'. I don?t have any problem with the words per se, but I do have a problem with the associations they bring, such as ?primitive art?. As I said, the works come from an extraordinarily rich cultural heritage and the designs are based on ancient clan knowledge. However, the result we see today is not primarily the documenting of the past, but a process that detonates the present and even foretells the future. In other words, it is a living and breathing contemporary art practice that has relevance not only to the artist, but for all of us in making sense of the diverse cultures of the world which we live in and therefore our own identity and place. It is an art that is closely connected to nature and I would argue that any art which lacks a connection to nature will not last any length of time, whether it originates from a loft in Soho or a studio in Annandale. In the case of the Omie the art originates in the shadow of a volcano. If it is only about specific culture its relevance will soon fade, as in the end we are all part of nature and any artist who ignores this fact does so at their peril.

It is our pleasure and privilege to bring this dynamic new art to the public in this first major exhibition in Australia. I would like to thank David Baker and Drusilla Modjeska for their enthusiasm and support in bringing the art of the Omie women to our attention and for making this landmark exhibition possible.

EXHIBITIONS

Omie
The Barkcloth Art of Omie
A little more than a year ago, David Baker and Drusilla Modjeska visited me at Annandale Galleries carrying with them a roll of barkcloth they had brought back with them from a number of previous visits to Oro Province in Papua New Guinea.
19 July - 19 Aug 2006

Exhibition features:

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Please note, works in previous exhibitions may no longer be available, please visit our stockroom for available works