Post #624687 by KokoKele on Sat, Feb 11, 2012 9:35 PM

Understood and taken to heart. If I am going to challenge Sven Kirsten, I would want to challenge him in a manner that would somehow provide fun and enlightening thought processes. Frankly, I don't think I have the grapes. It would be like discussing Catholicism with the Pope! I don't think it's productive or fair to simply challenge the established paradigm, and it must, indeed, be tiring for someone who is so immersed in it as you to hear those challenges over and over. Did I say immersed in it? Hell, you're the guy who filled the pool! One of my big mistakes when signing on to TC was that I didn't pay enough heed to the "About Tiki Central" link. In context of the message therein, along with another quick thumb through the Book of Tiki, I would like to think I now understand where you're coming from when you ask "is it tiki?" And I hope my future posts are in line with the guiding values of this site. I've been looking at some of your thousands of posts, and I note that you have both a scholarly and light-hearted approach to tiki art as well as a fierce dedication to preserving its integrity.

I also get that you like many of the works that are growing out of "authentic" tiki and can approach them with the same sense of fun and scholarship. I believe I recognize the elements that appeal to you about these works, and I appreciate your sense of tiki style when applied to diverse media.

When you and I had our first conversation on Tiki Forum I was operating well outside the guiding principles of the forum when I was waxing ecstatic over a very fanciful piece of art and saying "sure it's tiki". I think I truly frustrated you with my reasoning, and I now understand why. If all new "tiki" art pieces moved in that direction the genre would be decimated. Are you concerned about the proliferation and appreciation of such pieces? Do you see them as a perplexing evolution of post-tiki style that you'll have to address some day?

Well, instead of providing my none-too-considered opinion about your question (what defines tiki art?) I'm just asking more questions. I think I'll sit back for a spell and see what you and other people have to say. There are a lot of giants on Tiki Central, and it's a blast getting to stand on their shoulders every once in a while.

Also, thanks for replying to my previous post, especially after all the tension we were experiencing. I'm SO embarrassed about that!

[ Edited by: KokoKele 2012-02-12 08:02 ]