August is proving to be a good month. This is another one of the shots that wanted me to take on Year 2 with my retrospective PNG Project.
The Tabusereia Sing-Sing group are simply gorgeous, the dances, the singing, the passion is just beautiful. And it was this sing-sing group that made me determined to buy a DSLR, and I am so glad I did.
love the light in your shot, the way it is glowing off the feathers, making them look like a crown and off her shoulders. and her teeth - they aren't red. nice shot.
@tonydebont - Shot with the kit lens, the 40-150 and there are moments when the sing-sing performers do get up close. I can't recall being in her way though...
@filsie65 - Thanks Phil, both the Tabusereia and Bougainville groups that perform in Moresby actively encourage the kids to get involved. Fantastic really!
@hellcat - oh yeah, the Motuans have stories for their tattoos. Traditionally this would have been a tatt for this young girl, but now they use Nicos or Magic Markers.... Go back and read here for Motuan Tattoo Stories. http://365project.org/bobfoto/365/2012-07-09
I remember that story well... I guess what I meant was did you know what her's mean. It looks like an interlocking chain down her face and forehead, then the break on her cheeks with the dots. It's an interesting pattern. (Even if you don't know what they mean... sheesh, typing and now not knowing EVERYTHING when I ask... *sigh*)
@hellcat - I think the individual patterns act as an hieroglyph and a story could be construed if a certain sequence was applied, but I do get the impression that there was some flexibility in the form of personal expression allowed. Not all the girls had the same overall design, but they shared elements with each other.
I have a contemporary Motuan wall hanging nearby and while the motifs are part of the design, the modern design and nature may render the whole wall hanging as gobble de gook. Perhaps a Motuan could explain what an individual mark represents, but there may not be an overall story.
And I think this is the same here.
But after seeing a few traditional Maori, Samoan and Melanesian facial tattoos, the young girl here definitely has a beard. Expressing perhaps her desire to explore, to go to sea, to fish and to be part of a new world? This Motuan sing-sing group only ever introduced one of their songs and that was a Harvest song, so perhaps other songs were laments on their husbands, fathers and brothers long distance travels on the trade winds?
@worldbiking - Why thank you Amaya for the fave, I believe they are died chicken feathers....
@kjarn - Thanks Kathy A :)
@tonydebont - Shot with the kit lens, the 40-150 and there are moments when the sing-sing performers do get up close. I can't recall being in her way though...
@tigerdreamer - Thanks Karen H :)
@catsmeowb - Fortunately there are some very clever people over in PNG who do not condone the chewing of the dreadful nut.
@geocacheking - Cheers Cam, thanks!
@sassik - Cheers Sassik!
http://365project.org/bobfoto/365/2012-07-09
I have a contemporary Motuan wall hanging nearby and while the motifs are part of the design, the modern design and nature may render the whole wall hanging as gobble de gook. Perhaps a Motuan could explain what an individual mark represents, but there may not be an overall story.
And I think this is the same here.
But after seeing a few traditional Maori, Samoan and Melanesian facial tattoos, the young girl here definitely has a beard. Expressing perhaps her desire to explore, to go to sea, to fish and to be part of a new world? This Motuan sing-sing group only ever introduced one of their songs and that was a Harvest song, so perhaps other songs were laments on their husbands, fathers and brothers long distance travels on the trade winds?
And yes, that makes sense when I see it in writing here... I hope they write it down somewhere. Oral traditions will die out someday.