From The Outrigger Issue 55, Autumn 2013
Chiefs & Governors: Art and Power in Fiji
On 7th June, the Fijian High Commissioner to the UK, Solo Mara, opened the first major exhibition in the UK dedicated to Fijian art. The occasion was honoured by the participation of numerous members of the UK-based Fijian community, with meke (dances and songs) adding to the celebratory atmosphere. Chiefs & Governors: Art and Power in Fiji will be at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology (MAA) at the University of Cambridge until 19 April 2014.
Chiefs & Governors draws on MAA's exceptional collection of Fijian artefacts, photographs and archives, which is closely linked to the early colonial history of Fiji and the foundation of the Museum. Baron Anatole von Hugel, MAA's first curator, travelled within Fiji between 1874 and 1877, a period coinciding with Fiji's entry into the British Empire. Along with Sir Arthur Gordon (First Governor of Fiji) and Alfred Percival Maudslay (Sir Arthur's private secretary), von Hugel assembled an impressive Fijian collection, including outstanding objects presented by Fijian and Tongan chiefs. This formed the founding ethnographic collection of the Museum when it opened in 1884.
The displays explore the power of Fijian art in the past and in the present. Richly patterned barkcloths (masi), exquisite ornaments, and carvings in whale ivory and wood celebrate the creativity and expertise of their makers. The rich material on display also highlights the continuing significance of central aspects of Fijian culture. An installation showing a solevu, a ceremonial event involving the presentation and re-distribution of goods, links the past with the present.
Chiefs & Governors was curated by Anita Herle and Lucie Carreau and supported by Arts Council England, the University of Cambridge Crowther-Beynon Fund, and the University of East Anglia Sainsbury Research Unit. It is the first major outcome of the Fijian Art research project (2011-2014) funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, UK. The exhibition is accompanied by a beautiful catalogue of 136 pages with 189 illustrations, available for £15.00 from MAA on online at www.maa.cam.ac.uk.
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