Post #316923 by bigbrotiki on Fri, Jul 6, 2007 1:12 AM

Very good point. Yet the fact that I am trying to keep Tiki Style defined today, during its revival, as mainly Polynesian, does not change what inspired creative license was taken in the past. Witco made sculpture and furniture based on both, Oceanic AND African primitive art, which is in keeping with the tradition of the "Moderns" (as the European avantgarde of the 1920s was called), who drew inspiration from ALL "primitive art" (mostly in the form of carved idols). Therefore I am calling Witco TIKI MODERN, with partly generic/ partly Polynesian god-heads being its main feature, and modernism/primitivism being the other stylistic element. Also because of the fact that Witco was successful with their product MAINLY because it met the public's need for exotica fueled by the POLYNESIAN craze. However, there definitely was another customer group (I am quoting from Tiki Modern):

"It might come as a surprise then that some of the offerings by Witco Inc also struck a chord with young African Americans who were looking for their roots during the black liberation movement of the 1960s and early ‘70s. Although, its high cliche content was clearly the antithesis to the new black self-confidence that contemporary civil rights organizations promoted, the audaciousness of Witco style fit in with the “super-cool” individualism that young colored men cultivated at the time, even if it was pure blaxploitation."

And another quote from my chapter "WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE-The history and meaning of the Leopard print":"Witco's atavistic native carvings that framed these exotic critter fabrics in profusion were pure pop primitivism, an amalgamation of Oceanic and African tribal art, perfect for your home Tiki lounge.
Although leopards and tigers never roamed in the Polynesian islands, they were associated by proxy. The equation here was: Native environs=teaming jungles=big cats. This kind of mixing up of stylistic influences was characteristic of the fantasy world of Tiki Modern, where the spirit of whimsical savagery reigned, leaving boring authenticity to the stuffed shirts. Anyway, most white folks didn’t know better, or cared."

Of course, this liberal interpretation of Tiki will be used to prove that I am contradicting myself and that Tiki is a free-for-all style fest. But again, I am differentiating here (splitting hairs, some will say):

TIKI STYLE = POLYNESIAN POP
TIKI MODERN = POP PRIMITIVISM (which includes Polynesian Pop, but also goes beyond it in its sources)