The Art of Tuvalu has traditionally been expressed in the design of clothing and traditional handicrafts such as the decoration of mats and fans. Tuvaluan clothing was traditionally made from Fala leaves (Screw Pine or Pandanus).[1]
The material culture of Tuvalu uses traditional design elements in artifacts used in everyday life such as the design of canoes and fish hooks made from traditional materials. The design of women's skirts (titi) and tops (teuga saka), that are used in performances of the traditional dance songs of Tuvalu, represents contemporary Tuvaluan art and design.[2]
The collection of the Museum of New Zealand holds Tuvaluan artifacts and handicraft, including a man's jacket and a Mother Hubbard dress[Note 1] made from pandanus leaves that were made following the impact of Christian missionaries who demanded that the women of Tuvalu adopt more conservative clothing as compared to traditional Tuvaluan clothing.[4]
The women of Tuvalu use Cypraeidae (cowrie, pule) such as Cypraea mauritiana, C. arabica, C. tigris, C. depressa, C. mapa, C. carneola, C. vitellus, C. lynx[5] and other shells harvested from the reefs in traditional handicrafts[5] which includes creating shell necklaces (tui misa or tui pule) and the decoration of mats, fans and wall hangings.[6]Crochet (kolose) is one of the art forms practiced by Tuvaluan women.[7]
A traditional headband (fau o aliki) or headdress (kula, pale) made out of pandanus, such as those prepared for the inauguration of a chief (aliki) would follow a specific design and the task of creating the headband or headdress is often reserved to a specific person, such as a daughter of the chief.[8] The traditional floral garland of a young woman (Te fou ote tamafine) or a headdress for a woman (fou) would also follow a specific design using tiale (gardenia), pua (guettarda speciosa) and melia (frangipani).[8][9]
Te titi tao is a traditional skirt placed upon another skirt - a titi kaulama - and tops (teuga saka), headbands, armbands, and wristbands continue to be used in performances of the tradition dance music of Tuvalu, such as the fatele''.[9][10]
The fatele, in its modern form, is performed at community events and to celebrate leaders and other prominent individuals, such as the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in September 2012.[11][12]
Contemporary dancing skirts (titi) and tops (teuga saka) may still incorporate pandanus leaves, as well as synthetic or natural cloth that is decorated with bold geometric motifs and bold colours.[2][9] Tuvaluan men also participate in performances of the traditional music in the costumes that follow tradition style that are made from pandanus leaves and synthetic or natural cloth that incorporate bold colours. Marriage ceremonies are usually conducted with men and women in traditional costumes.
The material culture of Tuvalu
In 1960–1961 Gerd Koch a German anthropologist, visited the atolls of Nanumaga, Nukufetau and Niutao, which resulted in his publication of a book on the material culture of the Ellice Islands, which described, with illustrations, the design of traditional handicrafts and artifacts. Following the change of name to Tuvalu, the English translation by Guy Slatter was published under the title The Material Culture of Tuvalu.[13]Charles Hedley, a naturalist at the Australian Museum, had earlier written the General Account of the Atoll of Funafuti (1896) which described some uses of the native plants and trees on Funafuti.[14]
The churches and community buildings that used for wedding celebrations and community activities (the falekaupule or maneapa)[15][16] are decorated by the community with the exterior painted with white paint that is known as lase, which is made by burning a large amount of dead coral with firewood. The whitish powder that is the result is mixed with water and painted on the buildings.[17]
Contemporary Tuvaluan art and literature
Artists with Tuvaluan ancestry in migrant communities, such as the Tuvaluan community in Auckland, New Zealand, produce work using traditional techniques and media and also using modern materials and contemporary Polynesian graphic designs.[18]
In 2015 an exhibition of the art of Tuvalu was held on Funafuti, with works that addressed climate change through the eyes of artists and the display of Kope ote olaga (possessions of life), which was a display of the various artefacts of Tuvalu culture.[9]
Lakiloko Keakea was born on Nui, Tuvalu, and now lives in New Zealand. Keakea learnt the practise of 'kolose' (crochet) and began making dresses and 'tiputa' (crochet tops). Keakea became active in Fakapotopotoga Fafine Tuvalu, an art group that taught and promoted the art practices of women from the various islands of Tuvalu.[19] she travelled with the group to the Marshall Islands and learn the techniques of making 'fafetu', a star-shaped woven design.[20][21] She is a member of Fafine Niutao I Aotearoa – the Tuvalu Women's arts collective.[19]
Selina Tusitala Marsh, of Samoan, Tuvaluan, English and French descent, is a published poet. She represented Tuvalu at the London Olympics Poetry Parnassus event in 2012.[22]
Funafuti lagoon (Te Namo)
International artists and Tuvalu
Vincent Huang, a Taiwanese artist, constructed an installation on the reef of Funafuti in 2010 that was designed to raise awareness of the effect of climate change in Tuvalu.[23] He was invited to create the Tuvalu Pavilion at the 2013 Venice Biennale.[24] In 2014 he had an exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei that invited visitors to consider the moral threat climate change presents to Tuvalu.[25] Huang was invited to represent Tuvalu at the 2015 Venice Biennale.[26][27] He created a turquoise pool crossed by two black walkways. The weight of the people on the walkways results in the pathways sinking into the water causing 'flooding' that symbolically reproduces the impact of global warming on Tuvalu.[28] Huang selected the PVC lining of the pool to reproduce the colour of the "beautiful crystal blue of the Tuvalu lagoon".[27][29]
1 2 Randy Thaman, Feagaiga Penivao, Faoliu Teakau, Semese Alefaio, Lamese Saamu, Moe Saitala, Mataio Tekinene and Mile Fonua (2017). "Report on the 2016 Funafuti Community-Based Ridge-To-Reef (R2R)"(PDF). Rapid Biodiversity Assessment of the Conservation Status of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BES) in Tuvalu. Retrieved 13 February 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ Linkels, Ad (2000). The Real Music of Paradise. Rough Guides, Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.). p.221. ISBN1-85828-636-0.
↑ Peter Bennetts & Tony Wheeler (2001). Time & Tide: The Islands of Tuvalu. Lonely Planet. ISBN1-86450-342-4.
↑ Goldsmith, Michael. (1985). Transformations of the Meeting-House in Tuvalu. In Antony Hooper and Judith Huntsman, eds., ‘Transformations of Polynesian Culture’ Polynesian Society.
↑ Panapa, Tufoua (2012). "Ethnographic Research on Meanings and Practices of Health in Tuvalu: A Community Report"(PDF). Report to the Tuvaluan Ministries of Health and Education: Ph D Candidate Centre for Development Studies – "Transnational Pacific Health through the Lens of Tuberculosis" Research Group. Department of Anthropology, The University of Auckland, N.Z. pp.39–41. Archived from the original(PDF) on 3 October 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands, northeast of Vanuatu, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna, and north of Fiji.
The Western Pacific nation of Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is situated 4,000 kilometers (2,500 mi) northeast of Australia and is approximately halfway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna and north of Fiji. It is a very small island country of 26 km2 (10 sq mi). Due to the spread out islands it has the 38th largest Exclusive Economic Zone of 749,790 km2 (289,500 sq mi).
The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesians, so the origins of the people of Tuvalu can be traced to the spread of humans out of Southeast Asia, from Taiwan, via Melanesia and across the Pacific islands of Polynesia.
Tuvaluan, often called Tuvalu, is a Polynesian language closely related to the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. It is more or less distantly related to all other Polynesian languages, such as Hawaiian, Māori, Tahitian, Samoan, Tokelauan and Tongan, and most closely related to the languages spoken on the Polynesian Outliers in Micronesia and Northern and Central Melanesia. Tuvaluan has borrowed considerably from Samoan, the language of Christian missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Nanumea is the northwesternmost atoll in the Polynesian nation of Tuvalu, a group of nine coral atolls and islands spread over about 400 miles (640 km) of the Pacific Ocean just south of the equator and west of the International Date Line. Nanumea is 4 km2 (1.5 sq mi) with a population of 512 people.
The traditional music of Tuvalu consists of dances, including fatele, fakanau and fakaseasea. The influence of the Samoan missionaries sent to Tuvalu by the London Missionary Society from the 1860s resulted in the suppression of songs about the traditional religions or magic and many songs were lost. As the influence of the missionaries diminished in the 20th century the traditional dances were revived and the siva dance tradition from Samoa also became popular. The fatele, in its modern form, is performed at community events and to celebrate leaders and other prominent individuals.
Nui is an atoll and one of nine districts of the Pacific Ocean state of Tuvalu. It has a land area of 3.37 km² and a population of 610.
Funafala is an islet of Funafuti, Tuvalu that is inhabited by five families, with a church also located on the islet. Funafala means 'the pandanus of Funa', the name of a chief, after whom also the group has been named Funafuti.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Tuvalu:
Funafuti is the capital of the island nation of Tuvalu. It has a population of 6,320 people, and so it has more people than the rest of Tuvalu combined, with approximately 60% of the population. It consists of a narrow sweep of land between 20 and 400 metres wide, encircling a large lagoon 18 km long and 14 km wide. The average depth of the Funafuti lagoon is about 20 fathoms. With a surface area of 275 square kilometres (106.2 sq mi), it is by far the largest lagoon in Tuvalu. The land area of the 33 islets around the atoll of Funafuti totals 2.4 square kilometres (0.9 sq mi); taken together, they constitute less than one percent of the total area of the atoll. Cargo ships can enter Funafuti's lagoon and dock at the port facilities on Fongafale.
Sport is an important part of Tuvaluan culture, which sporting culture is based on traditional games and athletic activities and the adoption of some of the major international sports of the modern era.
The Funafuti Conservation Area is a marine conservation area covering 33 square kilometers of reef, lagoon and motu (islets) on the western side of Funafuti atoll in Tuvalu. The marine environment of the conservation area includes reef, lagoon, channel and ocean; and are home to many species of fish, corals, algae and invertebrates. The islets are nesting sites for the green sea turtle and Fualopa hosts a breeding colony of black noddy.
The cuisine of Tuvalu, a state in the Central Pacific (Oceania), is based on the staple of coconut and the many species of fish found in the ocean and the lagoons of the atolls of Tuvalu. Pulaka,, or swamp taro, is an important source of carbohydrates. Rice now forms an important part of the diet. Coconut is used in different forms with coconut water, coconut milk and the flesh of the coconut being used to flavour dishes. Various desserts made on the islands include coconut and coconut milk, instead of animal milk.
Women in Tuvalu continue to maintain a traditional Polynesian culture within a predominantly Christian society. Tuvaluan cultural identity is sustained through an individual's connection to their home island. In the traditional community system in Tuvalu, each family has its own task, or salanga, to perform for the community. The skills of a family are passed on from parents to children. The women of Tuvalu participate in the traditional music of Tuvalu and in the creation of the art of Tuvalu including using cowrie and other shells in traditional handicrafts. There are opportunities of further education and paid employment with non-government organisations (NGOs) and government enterprises, education and health agencies being the primary opportunities for Tuvaluan women.
The fatele or faatele is a traditional dance song of Tuvalu. Dancing songs are the most common type of traditional Tuvaluan song, with other traditional dance styles including fakanau and fakaseasea.
Agriculture in Tuvalu is based on coconut and swamp taro, , which is similar to taro but "with bigger leaves and larger, coarser roots"; taro is also cultivated in Tuvalu.
Ani O'Neill is a New Zealand artist of Cook Island and Irish descent. She has been described by art historian Karen Stevenson as one of the core members of a group of artists of Pasifika descent who brought contemporary Pacific art to "national prominence and international acceptance".
Lakiloko Keakea is an artist from Tuvalu, living in New Zealand. She is a member of Fakapotopotoga Fafine Tuvalu – the Tuvalu Women’s arts collective.
Kolokesa Uafā Māhina-Tuai is a Tongan curator and writer, whose work explores the role of craft in Tongan society. In the 2022 New Year Honours, Māhina-Tuai was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to cultures and the arts.
Te ano is a team sport played with 2 balls in which two teams face each other about 7 metres (23 ft) apart on a malae. Two balls are used simultaneously in the game with each ball being about 12 centimetres (4.7 in) in diameter, It is a traditional game played in Tuvalu, and also in the Pacific Islands of Tokelau & Sikaiana.
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