Post #198090 by ikitnrev on Mon, Nov 14, 2005 7:13 PM

Knowing about the existence and reading up on the past masters of tiki is good, but one could say this is true about whatever genre of activity you are interested in. I remember reading an article where some basketball superstar, probably Jordan, was criticizing the younger pros for not knowing who George Mikan or Oscar Robertson were.

People are going to approach tiki from all different angles. Some will see a carving, and decide to do as much research as they can before they pick up their their first chisel, or their first ukulele, or their first cocktail shaker. Others will glimpse an initial spark from somewhere within the world of tiki, and suddenly they are moving out at 100mph with a 'take no prisoners, listen to no criticism' approach, as they wish to create something - perhaps a masterpiece - from that spark before it starts to dim, and they may or may not start reading about the history of tiki many years later.

I don't think it is a matter of saying which of the above is the better - it is more a matter of being able to recognize the benefits of both.

And if the technical skills of the person are good, or if one can recognize many of the historical tribal methods or styles incorporated into the design, or if some of that raw, but enthusiastic talent ends up being captured in the final piece -- well, then there is a good chance that I will praise the result. And I do hope that miracles will occur if someone can properly mix all of the above ingredients.

I feel that I am quite familiar with the traditional history of tiki. Yet, when I consider the fact that I own the impressive Meyer's 'Oceanic Art' book, but have not yet started reading it, I realize that there is so much more that I could learn ... and reading that book will likely open even more doors. You read a couple of inches, and you sense the additional miles of untouched information that stretches out beyond the horizon.

I see some of the tikis that are more inspired by hot rod racing than historical or anthropologic heritage, and I am often amused, as I try to picture a drag strip on some remote desert Pacific island. On one hand, the juxtaposition is out of place, yet because I am bit familiar (only vicariously) with Ed Roth and the Gearhead culture, I can really appreciate how tiki has merged within that area of American subculture. Other tikis might be inspired by the designs of some obscure foreign animation series, and that cartoony reference would be lost to me - and would still be lost to me even if I was well read on all of the historical references.

After all of the above, I still do agree somewhat with much of B.K.'s first post. When in doubt, his informal listing of who the masters are, and of what some of the best book references are, do provide a good solid basis for one to fall back on. For some it will be a good starting point, for others it will be reached later, but it is unlikely that any harm will be done to your life when you do discover them.

Vern