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Mionomehi Oriseegé (Ancestral Paths): Barkcloth from Omie

Past exhibition
18 August - 14 September 2016
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Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Diona Jonevari (Suwarari), Dahoru’e, buboriano’e, ve’i ija ahe, odunaigo’e , jo’o sor’e, sabu ahe ohu’o siha’e

Diona Jonevari (Suwarari) Papua NewGuinean, b. 1978

Dahoru’e, buboriano’e, ve’i ija ahe, odunaigo’e , jo’o sor’e, sabu ahe ohu’o siha’e
natural pigments on nioge (barkcloth)
195 x 102 cm
832033
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Omie mountains, beaks of the Papuan Hornbill, bone of the lizard, jungle vine, uncurling fern fronds, spots of the wood-boring grub and fruit of the Sihe tree This is the...
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Omie mountains, beaks of the Papuan Hornbill, bone of the lizard, jungle vine, uncurling fern fronds, spots of the wood-boring grub and fruit of the Sihe tree
This is the largest painting that Diona has thus far created and through its confident masterful composition affirms her position as a highly significant painter among the Omie. The lines that run through the work are known as oriseege (pathways) and provide a compositional structure to the the designs. The border design within each frame is composed of two designs - the triangles are dahoru'e, Omie mountains, and the zig-zag design over the triangles is buboriano'e, the beaks of the Papuan Hornbill. Hornbills are the largest flying bird that can be found in Omie territory. The mountains motif is odunaigo'e, a climbing jungle vine that has sharp thorns. Diona originally observed this old Emate clan design at Gojavobehi village where Chief of Emate clan men, Nathan Gama, was making a kukuhone (bamboo smoking pipe). This was one the designs he was etching into the surface. The design with rows of black squares and dots is ve'i ija ahe, the bones of the lizard. Diona learnt this design from her father-in-law, Emmanuel Jonevari. The story of the designs told to Diona is, ' In the time of the ancestors, there were two lizards known as evene' that lived on Huvaima (Mt Lamington), a male and female. The lizards were very large and their heads were predominately red and black in colour with some yellow also. We Omie people can never kill or eat lizards because they live in a secret place on the bank of jov'e Jiri. Sometimes our ancestors would see the lizards sun-baking on a flat stone by the river but they are fast and retreat quickly. The stones and rocks where the lizards live are yellow and when water of the river flows through this area it turns a milky colour.'
The spots with the orriseege are sabu ahe representing the spots which can be seen on the sides of wood boring grubs. This grub is sacred to Omie people as it plays an important role within the creation story of how Huvaimo came a volcanic. It is a traditional soru'e (tattoo design) which was most commonly tattooed running on one line under both eyes. The diamond design represents the fruit of the sihe tree. This has yellow fruit and is found in the rain forest and eaten by cassowaries. In the time of the ancestors during tribal warfare, the male warriors had no food while they were defending their borders. They survived by chewing on the fruit of the sihe tree, swallowing the juice and then spitting out the pulp. The siha'e design is sometimes also called vinohu'e, the men's tattoo design of the belly button. The diamond shape was tattooed around men's navals during inititation rites.
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