Cultural History In Focus | “Idols and Art: Missionary Attitudes toward Indigenous Worship and the Material Culture on Nias, Indonesia 1904-1920” by Mai Lin Tjoa-Bonatz
Idols and Art
Missionary Attitudes toward Indigenous Worship and the Material Culture on Nias, Indonesia 1904 — 1920
by Mai Lin Tjoa-Bonatz
This article is generously provided here by Mai-Lin Tjoa-Bonatz.
Row of Ancestor Figures | Adu Nuwu
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Mai Lin Tjoa-Bonatz
Dr. Mai Lin Tjoa-Bonatz is teaching on Southeast Asia’s culture and history at several German universities. She has a PhD. in Art History from Technical University of Darmstadt and an M.A. in Art History, Archaeology, and Southeast Asian regional studies from Goethe Universität Frankfurt M., Germany. She was previously a research assistant at the Technical University of Darmstadt in the project “Housing of Historic City Centers”. After coordinating a research cooperation in Indonesia supported by the University of Göttingen, she worked at University of Mannheim as assistant of the dean. She was the small-finds assistant for excavations conducted in Syria (2009-2010). In 2003–2008 and 2011–2014, she worked as a research assistant at the Freie Universität Berlin conducted on Sumatra, Indonesia. She was formerly a Visiting Research Fellow at the Asia Research Institute and the ISEAS–Yushof Ishak Institute in Singapore. In 2018 she was appointed as visiting professor at the National University of the Philippines. Most recently she was employed as curator of the Golden Lotus Foundation working on gold jewelry. She has co-organized an exhibition on maritime cultural heritage.
Academic Background
2017 – 2019
Curator of the Golden Lotus Foundation, Singapore and Book Projects
2018
Research “Technology transfer in and around missionary stations in colonial Indonesia“ at the Technical University of Darmstadt and Visiting Professorship at the University of the Philippines
2016
Research Fellow at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore
2014
Research on “Maritime Cultural Property and Contested Ownership” Universität Göttingen
2011 – 2014
Research Associate at the Freie Universität of Berlin
2006 – 2007
Visiting Research Fellow “Asian Cities Project”, Asian Research Institute of the National University of Singapore
2002 – 2003
Faculty research assistant at the University of Mannheim
2000 – 2001
Coordinator of the research project “Stability of Rainforest Margins“, the Georg-August University Göttingen in Indonesia
1995 – 2001
Ph.D. candidate at the Technical University Darmstadt
2000
DAAD-Scholarship at the National Cheng-Kung University/Taiwan
1994 – 1998
Research associate “Housing in Historic City Centres of Southeast Asia” at the Technical University of Darmstadt
1987 – 1994
M.A. in art history, archaeology and Southeast Asian regional studies in Goethe Universität Frankfurt M.
Main Publications
Mikael Hård, M. L. Tjoa-Bonatz: Trading Zones in a Colony. Transcultural Techniques at Missionary Stations in the Dutch East Indies 1860–1940. Social Studies of Science (reviewed paper is accepted for print).
M. L. Tjoa-Bonatz (ed.): A View from the Highlands. Archaeology and History of West Sumatra, Indonesia. Singapore: ISEAS 2019.
M. L. Tjoa-Bonatz, Nicole Lockhoff: Art Historical and Archaeometric Analyses of Ancient Jewellery (7–16th c.): The Prillwitz Collection of Javanese Gold. Archipel 97, 2019, 19-68.
M. L. Tjoa-Bonatz: Struggles over Historic Shipwrecks in Indonesia. Economic versus Preservation Interests, in: Brigitta Hauser-Schäublin, Lynn V. Prott (ed.): Cultural Property and Contested Ownership. The Trafficking of Artefacts and the Quest for Restitution. New York: Routledge 2016, 85-107.
M. L. Tjoa-Bonatz: From Idol to Art. Missionary Attitudes Towards Indigenous Worship on Nias, Indonesia, 1903–1920. In Thomas David Dubois (ed.): Casting, Imperialism and the Transformation of Religion in East and Southeast Asia. New York: Palgrave 2009, 105-128.
M. L. Tjoa-Bonatz: Vom Hofhaus zum Reihenhaus. Das Shophouse im kolonialzeitlichen Penang, Malaysia [From Courtyard House to Rowhouse. The Shophouse in Colonial Penang, Malaysia]. Stuttgart: IRB 2003.
Colophon
Author | Mai Lin Tjoa-Bonatz
Publication | Casting Faiths: Imperialism and the Transformation of Religion in East and Southeast Asia — pp 105-128
Editor | Thomas David DuBois
Publisher | Palgrave Macmillan, London
Year of Publication | 2009