Post #383886 by bigbrotiki on Sun, Jun 1, 2008 11:20 AM

I find it sad that for an artist with that much talent, there seems to have been little effort expended here to link the designs to any Oceanic or mid-century traditions. Among the 36 renderings, I can only find a handful where I detect actual Tiki inspiration, the rest is all over the place in design, patterns and colors. As I repeatedly stated, a Tiki is not just any carved face with a toothy grin, it has a distinct heritage and context. Even when it does end up being more fantasy than authentic, Tiki is not a stylistic free for all. I'm sorry, but to create "Owl Tikis" and "Tiger Tikis" is not much different than Disney making Mickey Mouse and Goofy look like wood carvings and calling them Tiki. Some might think they are, but I do not.

The artistic traditions of original Oceanic cultures are vast and varied in their artistic genius, and the works of mid-century Tiki carvers that used them as inspirations are incredibly creative and funny. Without any real connection to either, any piece of art, no matter how talented in its execution, could be termed fantasy tribal/folk/world art --but not Tiki.