The Shape of Time: Art and Ancestors of Oceania from the Metropolitan Museum of Art at the National Museum of Qatar

 

Ancestor Figure (Yene)
Leti Islands
Maluku Tenggara, Indonesia
19th–early 20th century
Wood
H. 12 3/4 in. × W. 4 in. × D. 3 1/4 in. (32.4 × 10.2 × 8.3 cm)
Gift of Fred and Rita Richman, 1987 (1987.453.5)   
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 
 

The Shape of Time

Art and Ancestors of Oceania from the Metropolitan Museum of Art

October 24, 2023 — January 25, 2024

 

The National Museum of Qatar will host nearly 130 cherished works from The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s unparalleled Oceanic collection, which are traveling outside of The Met’s walls for the first time in nearly a century, as the Michael C. Rockefeller Wing is being renovated. The exhibition is organized by themes—Voyaging, Ancestors, and Time—which demonstrate the interconnectedness of Pacific Islanders and their rich cultural heritage and the dynamic artistic expressions on display that date back four centuries.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Exhibition Preview

 

Ceremonial Board (Malu)
Sawos artist
Papua New Guinea, Middle Sepik River
19th century 
Wood
H. 75 x W. 24 x D. 6 1/2 in. (190.5 x 61 x 16.5 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Gift of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1969 (1978.412.713)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Ancestor Figure (Yene)
Leti Islands
Maluku Tenggara, Indonesia
19th–early 20th century
Wood
H. 12 3/4 in. × W. 4 in. × D. 3 1/4 in. (32.4 × 10.2 × 8.3 cm)
Gift of Fred and Rita Richman, 1987 (1987.453.5)   
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Club (Gugu)
Fiji
19th century
Wood
H. 7 5/8 × W. 2 × L. 43 in. (19.4 × 5.1 × 109.2 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1399)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Shield
Awyu artist
West Papua, Indonesia
Early 20th century
Wood, paint, fiber
H. 58 × W. 25 × D. 4 in. (147.3 × 63.5 × 10.2 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1598)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Ancestral Couple (Ana Deo)
Nage
Flores Island, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
Late 19th–early 20th century
Wood
(Approx.) H. 10 × W. 21 × D. 8 in. (25.4 × 53.3 × 20.3 cm)
Gift of Fred and Rita Richman, 2006 (2006.510)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Figure (Hampatong)
Ngadju or Ot Danum peoples
Indonesia
19th–early 20th century
Wood
H. 71 x W. 12 x D. 10 1/2 in. (180.3 x 30.5 x 26.7 cm)
Gift of Fred and Rita Richman, 1988 (1988.124.3)    
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art    

Shield (Grere'o)
Solomon Islands 
Solomon Islands, Possibly New Georgia or Guadalcanal Island, Western province
Early to mid-19th century
Fiber, parinarium-nut paste, chambered-nautilus shell, pigment
H. 34 in. × W. 10 1/2 in. × D. 1 in. (86.4 × 26.7 × 2.5 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Gift of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1972 (1978.412.730)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Spirit Board?
Papua New Guinea
Late 19th–early 20th century 
Wood, paint, fiber
H. 39 x W. 8 x D. 2 in. (99.1 x 20.3 x 5.1 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1641)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Woman's Ceremonial Skirt (Lawo Butu or Lawo Ngaza)
Ngada 
Flores Island, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia 
Late 19th–early 20th century
Cotton, glass beads, chambered nautilus shell, nassa shells
H. 74 × W. 30 in. (187.96 × 76.2 cm) 
Purchase, The Fred and Rita Richman Foundation Gift, 2006 (2006.2)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Club ('U'u)
Marquesan (Enata) people
French Polynesia
19th century
Wood (Casuarina equisetifolia)
H. 57 3/8 × W. 4 1/2 × D. 7 in. (145.7 × 11.4 × 17.8 cm)
Gift of Michael D. and Sophie D. Coe, 1992 (1992.223)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Canoe Figurehead (Nguzu Nguzu, Musu Musu, or Toto Isu)
New Georgia Island(?)
Solomon Islands, New Georgia Island possibly, Western province
Late 19th–early 20th century
Wood, paint, shell
H. 5 1/4 × W. 2 1/4 × D. 3 3/4 in. (13.3 × 5.7 × 9.5 cm)
Gift of Morris J. Pinto, 1976 (1976.351)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Headrest
Tami Islands
Papua New Guinea
Mid-to late 19th century 
Wood, lime
H. 4 13/16 x W. 2 5/8 x D. 6 3/8 in. (12.3 x 6.6 x 16.2 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1528)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Panel (Masi Kesa)
Fiji
Mid-to-late 19th century
Barkcloth, pigment
W. 105 x L. 110 in. (266.7 x 279.4 cm)
Gift of Adelaide and Edmund Carpenter, 1990 (1990.333.9)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Lime Spatula/Currency Holder (Gabaela or 'Nga)
Massim region
Papua New Guinea
19th–early 20th century 
Turtle shell
H. 11 1/4 x W. 6 1/4 x D. 1/8 in. (28.6 x 15.9 x 0.3 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1464)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Breastplate (Tema, Tambe, or Tepatu)
Santa Cruz Islands
Solomon Islands
Late 19th–early 20th century
Tridacna shell, turtle shell, trade cloth, fiber
D. 3/16 × Diam. 7 1/2 in. (0.5 × 19.1 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1519)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Paddle (Hose)
Bougainville or Buka Island
Papua New Guinea
Late 19th–early 20th century 
Wood, paint
H. 66 3/4 × W. 6 1/2 × D. 1 in. (169.5 × 16.5 × 2.5 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Purchase, Nelson A. Rockefeller Gift, 1966 (1978.412.1491)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Pendant
New Georgia Island, Solomon Islands, New Georgia Island, Western province
Early to mid-20th century
Conus shell
H. 2 1/4 x W. 2 1/8 x D. 1/4 in. (5.7 x 5.4 x 0.6 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Gift of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1969 (1978.412.767)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mask (Kavat)
Kairak Baining people
Papua New Guinea
1973
Bamboo, barkcloth, paint
H. 54 x W. 30 x D. 14 in. (137.2 x 76.2 x 35.6 cm)
Gift of George and Sarah Corbin, 2005 (2005.460.1)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Headdress (Kapurei [?])
Sulka people
Papua New Guinea
Late 19th–early 20th century
Wood, paint
H. 43 1/2 x W. 10 1/4 x D. 8 3/4 in. (110.5 x 26 x 22.2 cm)
Gift of Evelyn A. J. Hall, 1981 (1981.331.1) 
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Sash (Lafi)
Wallis and Futuna Territory, France
Late 19th–early 20th century
Barkcloth, pigment
H. 22 x W. 143 1/4 in. (55.9 x 363.9 cm)
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979 (1979.206.1777)
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 
News 12, Exhibitions 3Editorial TeamArt of the Ancestors, Steven G. Alpert, Asian Art, Island Southeast Asian Art, Oceanic Art, Asiatica, Ethnographica, Ethnographic Art, Art Collection, Fine Art, Primitive Art, Indonesian Art, Tribal Art, Eyes of the Ancestors, Dr. Reimar Schefold