Tiki Art: Why Do You Do What You Do? - General Tiki

V VanTiki Member Hawaii Joined: Nov 25, 2005 Posts: 1046	V VanTiki Posted posted on Fri, Jun 13, 2008 2:54 PM Hoo-boy! I think I am going to finally dare to take a dip in this pool. I wasn't sure if this belonged in this thread, or the other one started by BigBroTiki, but since this pertains to my art and why I make it I opted for this thread. OK - Tiki mugs. It all began in 2002 when I saw Don Tiki preform at the Hula Hut. I ordered a Mai-Tai, and it came in a tiki mug that I got to keep. I cannot begin to tell you how profound the experience was. Here I was, on the boarder of Downtown Honolulu and Waikiki - and yet I was not. I was in a jungle hut, listening to ancient and exotic sounds and drinking from a carved vessel. I had been transported from the everyday to the fantastic. By the time I got home I had to make a mug. I had to explore the mystery of what these sculpted mugs do - they transcend their practical purpose (that of holding an alcoholic beverage) and become a gateway to an exotic locale/mindset. When you drink from a tiki mug, you are escaping the everyday and exploring the mysterious. Heck - the mug does not even have to be used for drinking - just seeing it and holding it makes you think of far away places and and adventurous deeds. Now, why do I make the kinds of mugs I make? And are they all Tiki Mugs? I understand where BigBroTiki is coming from in the "is it tiki" discussion. Many of the mugs I make are unusual, and some have little or nothing to do with carved wooden gods (my alien tentacle mugs would be a good example of this). This is where defining a "tiki mug" becomes a tricky business. For me, the label "Tiki Mug" has moved beyond the literal meaning of a tiki-shaped mug, and become a form of vessel that elevates the beverage and the act of drinking it beyond a tool for getting drunk and into a tool for sparking the imagination and escaping the monotony of day-to-day life. When sculpting my mugs I do pull imagery from classic Polynesian artwork, but I also love to "explore on my own". I like to make idols and objects that my friends and I would dream of finding in the jungles when we played as kids. I want my mugs to take you out of the ordinary - the deep dark jungle that they transport you to may not be 100% grounded in established Polynesian/pacific imagery, but it is still a great place to get lost :) Whew! Hope that wasn't too long-winded. Mahalo, Henrik "VanTiki"

Hoo-boy!
I think I am going to finally dare to take a dip in this pool. I wasn't sure if this belonged in this thread, or the other one started by BigBroTiki, but since this pertains to my art and why I make it I opted for this thread.

OK - Tiki mugs.
It all began in 2002 when I saw Don Tiki preform at the Hula Hut. I ordered a Mai-Tai, and it came in a tiki mug that I got to keep. I cannot begin to tell you how profound the experience was. Here I was, on the boarder of Downtown Honolulu and Waikiki - and yet I was not. I was in a jungle hut, listening to ancient and exotic sounds and drinking from a carved vessel. I had been transported from the everyday to the fantastic. By the time I got home I had to make a mug. I had to explore the mystery of what these sculpted mugs do - they transcend their practical purpose (that of holding an alcoholic beverage) and become a gateway to an exotic locale/mindset. When you drink from a tiki mug, you are escaping the everyday and exploring the mysterious. Heck - the mug does not even have to be used for drinking - just seeing it and holding it makes you think of far away places and and adventurous deeds.
Now, why do I make the kinds of mugs I make? And are they all Tiki Mugs? I understand where BigBroTiki is coming from in the "is it tiki" discussion. Many of the mugs I make are unusual, and some have little or nothing to do with carved wooden gods (my alien tentacle mugs would be a good example of this). This is where defining a "tiki mug" becomes a tricky business. For me, the label "Tiki Mug" has moved beyond the literal meaning of a tiki-shaped mug, and become a form of vessel that elevates the beverage and the act of drinking it beyond a tool for getting drunk and into a tool for sparking the imagination and escaping the monotony of day-to-day life. When sculpting my mugs I do pull imagery from classic Polynesian artwork, but I also love to "explore on my own". I like to make idols and objects that my friends and I would dream of finding in the jungles when we played as kids. I want my mugs to take you out of the ordinary - the deep dark jungle that they transport you to may not be 100% grounded in established Polynesian/pacific imagery, but it is still a great place to get lost :)
Whew! Hope that wasn't too long-winded.

Mahalo,
Henrik "VanTiki"

Post #386871 by VanTiki on Fri, Jun 13, 2008 2:54 PM