Hiapo ― Past And Present in Niuean Barkcloth

This book is an inspired, experimental and personal encounter with a brilliant but neglected art form, the painted hiapo of Niue island in central Polynesia. Most known pieces of hiapo (barkcloth or tapa) were produced in the mid to late nineteenth century and are now dispersed, largely in museum collections, all over the world. The paintings range from dynamic abstract patterns to detailed renderings of plants (including taro and missionaries' sunflowers), people (including European colonists), and signs of changing times, such as ships. They offer a window on a time when missionary impact was deepening and Niuean life was changing for ever.
The authors have worked on this project for a decade, visiting museums in North America, the Pacific, and throughout Europe. They have travelled to Niue to glean information from old people, and talked to many others about the past and present significances of these works of art. John Pule has been inspired by hiapo in producing his own paintings and etchings, a series of which is included in the book. Nicholas Thomas has drawn on the histories of hiapo in his studies of Pacific art and history, and he raises wider questions about how indigenous arts are interpreted by writers and curators for public audiences in the Pacific and elsewhere.
The illustrations, most of which are in full colour, bring together hiapo from all over the world. This book is the first study of this art form.