SKIN DEEP MAGAZINE • 15a view of tattoo beyond the limitations of tradition.
Visitors are greeted by her curation of six photographed
tattooed bodies featuring the work of Melbourne based
tattoo artist, Paul Stillen. Connected Bodies explores the
relationship he develops with clients as they collaborate
to create tattoos that pay homage to the wearer’s diverse
cultural heritage. It is an insight into a creative process
that outsiders to the craft may never consider, yet, the
exchange between tattooist and client can be one of mu-
tual palpable vulnerability, where the artist strives to ma-
terialise what can often be hidden deep within a client’s
psyche. Whether consciously or not, Stillen’s botanical
tattoos resemble Sydney Parkinson’s water-colour draw-
ings of native Australian plants made during Cook’s first
voyage. That symbolic irony pulls into focus the land on
which the museum stands, and the devastating effect of
immigration on First Peoples.
On the first level Tatau: Marks of Polynesia examines
the ancient custom of Samoan pe’a (traditional male tat-
too) and malu (traditional female tattoo), providing in-
sight into how they form a complex body of rituals and
motifs inextricably linked with transitions to adulthood,
culture, and sacredness.
The exhibition explores the emergent contemporary
Polynesian style that embodies concepts of both pe’a and
malu. Its vibrancy and visibility are due in part to the
global migration of Polynesians, outsider appreciation of
the style, and, not least, the efforts of the Sulu-ape fam-
ily, one of Samoa’s oldest and most revered custodians of
the sacred practice. The process of attaining a pe’a in a
traditional manner lasts up to five consecutive days, the
physical and psychological punishment of which cannot
be expressed in words, although, a Samoan friend once
relayed to me: “it was my PhD.”Photograph from Tatau: Marks of Polynesia
Photographer: John Agcaoili
Organised by JANM and toured internationally by Flying FishTitle : N.M. ( Pistachio, Rice, Barberry )
Photo print on cotton rag, 90 x 120 cm. Edition of 5, 2019.
Photograph courtesy of Gavin Green.Tattoo by Stan Corona. Photo by Kip Fulbeck.