WHEN and WHERE did Melanesian art enter Polynesian Pop? - General Tiki

B bigbrotiki Tiki Socialite Tiki Island, above the Silverlake Joined: Mar 25, 2002 Posts: 11621	B bigbrotiki Posted posted on Mon, Mar 15, 2010 11:21 PM On 2010-03-15 14:07, aquarj wrote: ...Or maybe the book illustration says it's a female, I didn't check. But just visually, I always thought that face structure kind of looked like a bearded and tattooed male. -Randy The caption sure does state "female". And I always felt the same about the impression the face makes: A very macho image for a macho Trader Vic. That's why it's so funny. Maybe he felt it reminded him of his step mom :D But seriously, I doubt even he ever knew, it probably was picked by a graphic designer from the book. I will not get back home until a month from now, so someone else who owns the book has to check it for more info. I doubt there is, the plates in it were more often used a loose illustrations of the general ethnographic text. Then again, this one has a full page, and is only one of five (or so) color ones done by Covarrubias. It would be interesting to find out where the piece is now, if it was owned by the N.Y Museum of Modern Art and they still have it, like the De Young Museum owning the OTHER Trader Vic Logo Tiki. But often, very little is known about the specific purpose of these carvings other than provenance of which region or village it came from.

On 2010-03-15 14:07, aquarj wrote:
...Or maybe the book illustration says it's a female, I didn't check. But just visually, I always thought that face structure kind of looked like a bearded and tattooed male.
-Randy

The caption sure does state "female". And I always felt the same about the impression the face makes: A very macho image for a macho Trader Vic. That's why it's so funny. Maybe he felt it reminded him of his step mom :D
But seriously, I doubt even he ever knew, it probably was picked by a graphic designer from the book.

I will not get back home until a month from now, so someone else who owns the book has to check it for more info. I doubt there is, the plates in it were more often used a loose illustrations of the general ethnographic text. Then again, this one has a full page, and is only one of five (or so) color ones done by Covarrubias. It would be interesting to find out where the piece is now, if it was owned by the N.Y Museum of Modern Art and they still have it, like the De Young Museum owning the OTHER Trader Vic Logo Tiki. But often, very little is known about the specific purpose of these carvings other than provenance of which region or village it came from.

Post #517665 by bigbrotiki on Mon, Mar 15, 2010 11:21 PM