1935 Ballyhoo Magazine South Seas Edition (image heavy) - General Tiki

M MrBaliHai Tiki Socialite Behind the Cheddar Curtain Joined: Jun 01, 2002 Posts: 1031	M MrBaliHai Posted posted on Sun, Apr 8, 2007 6:42 PM On 2007-04-08 17:54, Humuhumu wrote: Is there a thread on Tiki Central for everything? Heh. Why am I not surprised?...:) What you've got may not perfectly fit the bill of what that thread is talking about, but it'd be interesting to see! I think Steamtiki is a 'fecto name for Victorian tropical stuffs. Unfortunately, that thread never really coalesces around a single idea, but somehow combining The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (comic book version, not the excremental film) with Trader Vic's is probably close to what I'm getting at. The problem you'd have to deal with in mixing Tiki and Victorian styles is that the Victorians viewed Polynesia as an inferior culture that they had a manifest destiny to conquer, Christianize, and replace with their own, which is almost the total opposite of mid-century Polynesian pop. One of the most heartbreaking images I have is this 1881 litho of 4 proud, beautiful Tahitian girls covered from head-to-toe in Victorian missionary garb. I think that sums the Victorian attitude towards Polynesia up very neatly. Bringing the conversation back to Ballyhoo, it shows just how much that puritanical view had changed by the Thirties.

On 2007-04-08 17:54, Humuhumu wrote:
Is there a thread on Tiki Central for everything?

Heh. Why am I not surprised?...:)

What you've got may not perfectly fit the bill of what that thread is talking about, but it'd be interesting to see! I think Steamtiki is a 'fecto name for Victorian tropical stuffs.

Unfortunately, that thread never really coalesces around a single idea, but somehow combining The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (comic book version, not the excremental film) with Trader Vic's is probably close to what I'm getting at.

The problem you'd have to deal with in mixing Tiki and Victorian styles is that the Victorians viewed Polynesia as an inferior culture that they had a manifest destiny to conquer, Christianize, and replace with their own, which is almost the total opposite of mid-century Polynesian pop. One of the most heartbreaking images I have is this 1881 litho of 4 proud, beautiful Tahitian girls covered from head-to-toe in Victorian missionary garb. I think that sums the Victorian attitude towards Polynesia up very neatly.

Bringing the conversation back to Ballyhoo, it shows just how much that puritanical view had changed by the Thirties.

Post #297716 by MrBaliHai on Sun, Apr 8, 2007 6:42 PM