|
Tattoo News - August/September 2023
Aloha Kākou,
Sept. 16th is the Sacramento Aloha Festival which is taking place in Auburn. I'll be doing a seminar there on contemporary Polynesian tattooing at 1:30pm and will also have a vendor's booth. Or check on the EVENTS link on my webpage for details:
https://thepolynesiantattoo.com/events.htm
ONLINE
The next few links deal with tapa or barkcloth and it's relation to tattoo. If you are unfamiliar with tapa, there's a brief overview on Wikipedia-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapa_cloth. It's of importance as the designs are often closely related to those used in tattoo.
While looking for inspiration for a unique Samoan-inspired tattoo I found a surprising number of sites featuring siapo, or Samoan tapa cloth. I'm particularly impressed with what looks to be a student paper at
https://www.americanquarterly.org/sites/default/files/Castro%20PDF.pdf It's
very well done! If you are looking for images, there are some beautiful photos of Siapo at
https://www.tapapacifica.com/samoan-siapo-tapa-cloths.html Many of these pieces are for sale.
The Coconut TV has a large selection of videos focusing on Pacific tattoo, tapa, navigation and voyaging as well as numerous other topics, see
https://www.thecoconet.tv/tattoo-and-tapa-reclaiming-pacific-symbols/
There's a wealth of information here.
Kapa Kulture,
https://kapakulture.com/2013/07/12/dyes-designs-in-samoan-siapo/ has a lot of great information not just about Samoan siapo, but about kapa, the Hawaiian form, as well. Spend some time browsing here.
Tongan tattooist (and one of my apprentices many moons ago) Ni Powell has a great website with a discussion the revitalization of Tongan tattoo. Ni includes a discussion of ngatu, or Tongan tapa, and it's relation to tattooing today.
http://tongan_tattoo.tripod.com/TonganTattoo/id9.html Another site,
https://www.ding.com/community/history-of-traditional-tongan-tattoos-tribal-designs has a good but brief discussion of the Tongan tattoo revival which Aisea Toetu'u of Soul Signature Tattoo in Honolulu instigated in the late 1990s.
More on Tongan tattoo can be found on Te Papa Tongarewa, the National Museum of New Zealand's website:
https://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/2022/09/06/tongan-tattooing-reconnecting-to-fonua-across-time-and-space-through-the-art-of-tatatau/
Lalava, the art of lashing in Tonga is an incredible art with direct ties to tattoo. Filipe Tohi is perhaps the top lalava artist today. You can see his work at
https://lalava.net/index.php/ct-menu-item-13
Te Papa Museum also has a nice entry on Samoan tattoo on their website:
https://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/2016/12/02/the-changing-art-of-tatau-samoan-tattooing/ The Museum does a great blog that often focuses on Pacific arts, culture and language. You can signup for their newsletter on the website or try searching for Pacific topics/places that interest you.
Tatau: Marks of Polynesia is an excellent exhibition that is now at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts
https://umfa.utah.edu/Tatau The exhibit was organized by the Japanese American Museum in Los Angeles then traveled to Bishop Museum in Honolulu and now folks in Utah can see it as well as experience a number of fun & educational related events.
If you are seriously interested in Samoan Tatau, the definitive work on the subject is a book called Tatau: A History of Samoan Tattooing by Sean Mallon. It not an easy book to find new, but there are several affordable used copies on Amazon now-- https://rb.gy/eh4j9 .
Speaking of books on tattoo, an excellent book on Cook Island tattoo is finally back in print. Patterns of the Past: The Tattoo Revival in the Cook Islands by Therese Mangos is worth owning. It may be available from other book sellers but here's the Amazon link: https://rb.gy/cionv .
TRICIA'S TATTOO & TRAVEL SCHEDULE
My next tattoo trip to CA is fast approaching! I head back to Loomis just outside Sacramento and then down to LA. Please see below for specific dates. I know that Loomis is a bit of a drive for those of you in the south SF Bay, so my next trip (most likely in Feb/Mar) I'll be back in Alameda.
Here's my upcoming dates & locations:
Sept 8 - 22: Lomis, Sacramento area
Sept 16th is the Aloha Festival! Come!
Oct 7 - 22: Carson, Los Angeles area
Nov 1 - Feb '24: Home in Kaneohe, HI
Please call me at 808-734-8677 or email me at tattoo@lava.net if you'd like to schedule an appointment or even just a consultation. Consultations are free, but a $100. deposit is required to sign up for a tattoo appointment (unless we're continuing a piece and you're already signed up, or course). If you are a new client it will be beneficial to read over both the Schedule & Appointments link and the FAQ on my website:
https://thepolynesiantattoo.com/events.htm
ON MAUI
I'll close with some devastating news, although I'd imagine it's no longer news to most of you. On Aug. 8th fires swept through the Island of Maui. While there was some damage upcountry in Kula, the damage in Lahaina was horrific - the entire town burned to the ground displacing thousands of people. There are a number of ways you can help support the community. A number of Hawaiian musicians are hosting online streaming benefit concerts which is a fun way to donate and there are three community groups/websites that I recommend:
1. www.MauiNuiStrong.info is a great group with many options for folks to aid in the recovery; you can even donate airline miles so essential workers can get there!
2. www.HawaiiPeoplesFund.org is an incredible organization that I've followed since 1993. They support grassroots, native Hawaiian and community projects and I totally trust that they have the latest updates and know where funds can best be put to good use.
3. Nā 'Aikane o Maui Cultural Center in Lāhainā, is a grassroots Hawaiian
organization that has done wonderful things over the past decades to serve the
local community. See www.naaikane.org They
have been active 20 hours a day with recovery efforts since the fire. Incredible
people!
Mahalo,
Tricia
|
