Art of the Ancestors 2021 Gallery Expansion

 

Tutelary Figure
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

Memorial in Stone of Mother and Child
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

Funerary Figure | Tau-Tau
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 
 
 

To celebrate the completion of our first expansion of the galleries, Art of the Ancestors is presenting three examples from each newly re-installed gallery. Acknowledging the re-installation process provides us with an opportunity to express our gratitude and profound esteem for each local tradition cited and for every contributing institution represented on this site that is stewarding Island Southeast Asian material for our collective edification.

The pieces illustrated below are personal favorites. While they are all chef d'oeuvre examples of the highest artistic merit, they also possess deeper messages that promote and embody the spirit or personality of each of the local traditions being explored on Art of the Ancestors. At their very finest, Indonesian masterworks are edgy, agonal, and powerful expressions that are equally serene and with a confident sense of beauty that transcends any cultural or geographic boundaries. Few pieces of Indonesian art actually possess both finesse and fortissimo. Still, it is a natural outcome of a master craftsman in cultures that are Asian in outlook and that seek to mollify and please by ritually creating a sense of balance in all things. In response to our readership's questions about what constitutes quality or authenticity, we are dedicated to sourcing and posting artworks that fit these aforementioned criteria from local traditions as benchmarks for connoisseurship, documentation, dialogue, and further appreciation.

Making something as attractive and as practical as possible reflects the status of leading individuals and the community at large. This is the essence of power and protection and the commencement and terminus for the journey of more deeply understanding sublime Indonesian masterworks. The most compelling items on this site reflect a great impetus' of stylistic variation and materials ranging from works in wood, stone, bronze, precious metals, fiber, bead, and bone. With this sampling, we invite our readership to further explore Art of the Ancestors’ revamped galleries, where pieces of universal artistic merit, spirit, and provenance abound.

Steven G. Alpert, founder of Art of the Ancestors

 
 
 

Central House Ornament
© Museo di Storia Naturale dell'Università di Firenze | Italy

 

Frame & Door for a Beehive House (Euba Ekedodio)
© Museo di Storia Naturale dell'Università di Firenze | Italy

 

Aristocratic Women's Ceremonial Hat | Epaku
© Museum für Völkerkunde Dresden | Germany

 
 
 

Sacred Carving with Monkey Skull | Jaraik
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 

Decorated Boar’s Skull Hunting Trophy | Utet Simaigi | Inv #: IIC2663
© Museum der Kulturen Basel | Switzerland

 

Memorial Wall Panel with Wooden Figure of a Slain Headhunting Victim | Simoinang Tulangan Sirimanua
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 
 
 

Priest’s Sacred Book in Batak Script (surat Batak) | Pustaha
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

 

Mourning Mask | Topeng
© Museum Nasional Indonesia

 

Male Protective Figure | Pangulubalang
© Musée du quai Branly | France

 
 
 

Ancestor Statue | Adu
© Museum Nasional Indonesia

 

Memorial in Stone of Mother and Child
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

 

Seated Male Ancestor Figure | Adu Sihara Salawa
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

 
 
 

Ceremonial Banner Cloth | Palepai
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

Woman’s Ceremonial Skirt | Tapis
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

Ceremonial Split Rattan Mat | Lampit
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 
 
 

Standing Guardian Figure | Tepatung
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

War Canoe Prow Ornament
© Sarawak State Museum | Malaysia

Kejaman Chief’s Door
© Sarawak State Museum | Malaysia

 
 
 
 

Sacred Sa’dan Toraja Banner | Sarita
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

Vaunted Ancestor Figure from a Mamasa Aristocrat’s House
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

Figurative Door
© Yale University Art Gallery | Connecticut, USA

 
 
 
 
 

Belu Ceremonial Mask | Biola
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

Royal Woman’s Tubular Sarong (Detail) | Tais Feto
The Dallas Museum of Art | USA

 

Belu Female House Door | Oromattan
© Musée du Quai-Branly | France

 
 
 
 

Gravesite Funeral Figure
© Yale University Art Gallery | Connecticut, USA

 

Ancestor Figure | Itara
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 

Shrine Figure of Deity | Lebu-Hmoru
© Eskenazi Museum of Art | Indiana, USA

 
 

Pair of Nage Ancestor Figures | Ana Deo
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York, USA

 

The Bronze Weaver
© National Gallery of Australia, Canberra

Woman’s Ceremonial Sarong | Lawo Buto
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 
 
 
 

Woman's Ceremonial Sarong | Lau Hada (Detail)
© The Indianapolis Museum of Art | Indiana, USA

 

Funerary Statue
© Museum der Kulturen Basel | Switzerland

 

Man’s Ceremonial Ikat Mantle | Hinggi
© The Dallas Museum of Art | Texas, USA

 
 
 

Shrine Figure | Tavu | Sermata
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

 

Luang Pectoral
© Musée du quai Branly | France

 

Ancestral Shrine Figure | Lamiaha | Babar
© Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum | Germany

 
 
 

House Pylon Decorated with Ancestral Chief | Lake Sentani
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

 

Painted Bark Cloth | Maro | Lake Sentani
© Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen | The Netherlands

Ancestor Figure | Korwar | Geelvinck Bay Region
© Musée du quai Branly | France