26 Pacific Rim Masterworks in the Sainsbury Centre

 

Hornbill Carving | Northern New Ireland
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 
 

26 Pacific Rim Masterworks in the Sainsbury Centre

 

Curated by Steven G. Alpert

 
 

One of England's most charming museums is the Sainsbury Centre, an open, innovative glass and steel structure located on the University of East Anglia campus in Norwich.

A guiding intelligence, passion, and thoughtful approach to collecting art make the Robert and Lisa Sainsbury collection very special. Their first acquisition was in 1929. It was a bronze head, Baby Asleep, by the famous sculptor Sir Jacob Epstein, who ironically, as many of our readers know, was a keen exponent and collector of traditional art. The Sainsbury collection is one of the few remaining intact modernist collections created in the 20th century. They also collected material spanning the ancient world to more modern traditional arts encompassing 5,000 years of human history, from prehistory to the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 

We have selected a number of Indonesian items, including pieces from the Modang-Bahau Dayak tribal complex, from central east Borneo in a mix with other Pacific, Melanesian, Inuit, and Northwest Coast pieces for a peripatetic voyage around the Pacific Rim using highlights from their collection as visual accents to a grand arc of geography and art.

The Sainsbury Centre's Dayak aggregation is represented by a perfectly balanced composition carved on a baby carrier (katung) from the Bahau Sa'a people. The central interlocking row of heart-shaped hunkered figures is a signatory. They stand as magic protectors of an aristocratic child while announcing the status of its owners to the supernatural realm and to everyday life. Also included from the same tribal complex are a side panel from a mausoleum or salong, an inscribed aristocrat's work board of superior quality, and a fine wooden ceremonial dish whose handle is decorated with a vigorous mythical protector in the guise of an aso or dragon-dog. Additionally, a monumental and dramatic wood carving of a sacred hornbill from the Ngaju people of central Borneo and a rare war shield from the Sakuddei of Siberut in the Mentawai islands are included for our readers' appreciation.

The renowned African collector Saul Stanoff once opined that if you own a masterpiece, you have a collection. There are a number of truly extraordinary pieces from Polynesia in the Sainsbury collection that were acquired from the 1940s-the 1960s. Of the Polynesian items illustrated, a masterful Fijian priest's yaqona dish (iBuburau Ni Bete) in the shape of a flying duck is one of only a few known in this form. According to the literature, these dishes all came out of spirit houses when the local population converted to Christianity in the mid-19th century. Other remarkable Polynesian pieces at the Sainsbury Centre include a spare yet emotive free-standing Maori figure from the 18th to the first half of the 19th century, whose function, while not completely clear, is said to represent a type of ancestral figure that was once bound to the base of an important house's interior central roof post. From Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, the collection has two mighty items. First, there's the highly sophisticated top of a 'staff god.' It is of a type associated with traditional cultural practices before they were essentially destroyed in 1827 by the Reverend John Williams, who had several idols broken and shipped back to England. Three complete staffs, the longest being thirteen feet tall, are today housed in the Museum of Mankind in London, the Otago Museum (Oldman) in New Zealand, and the Royal Scottish Museum. In tandem with the god staff head is another masterpiece of Polynesian art (ca. 1775-1825) that is often referred to as a 'fisherman's god' as such idols were said to have been placed at the fore of a canoe and supplicated to insure a voyage's success.

The remaining items span the Pacific from New Guinea and eastern Melanesia to the Inuit of Alaska and diverse Northwest Coast groups.

From the Solomon Islands, there is a grouping of fine items. Reproduced here is an old 19th-century canoe prow ornament representing both a wave-breaking protector and an aggressive prayer for success as the figure holds a human trophy head in its upraised arms. Such ornaments were placed just above the waterline. Also from Roviana (New Georgia) is a finely modeled portrait-like kneeling figure in the naturalistic style of the second half of the 19th century. From Santa Isabel is one of the region's most iconic items, a ceremonial shield with a brilliant mosaic of finely worked bits of nautilus shell set on a wicker frame and affixed with parinarium nut glue. These shields are said to date from the early to the mid-19th century. There are a total of twenty-five known examples in a similar ovoid or in rectangular form. However, they were never observed being used by 19th-century Western visitors to the Solomon Islands.

The Sainsbury collection also contains exquisite examples of marine ivories spanning 2,000 years of the old Bering Sea and Alaskan cultures. A marvelous and fanciful composite plaque of pierced carved walrus ivory depicts zoomorphic beings (Old Bering Sea culture, ca 500-700 AD). Dating to the second half of the 19th century, the historic wooden mask of a wolf from Norton Sound, Alaska, is a powerful reminder of transformational worldviews where animals and humans were once conversant with one another. The scholar Dorothy Ray illustrated a related mask and "considers that the type comes from St. Michael and were used in dances for the Messenger Feast." (1967: pl. 14; 35/Ray/Stephen Hooper).

Items of ceremonial use and personal adornment punctuate the Northwest coast holdings. A Tlingit caribou antler horn comb from the late 18th century has a provenance dating back to Vancouver's epic voyage. It brilliantly depicts a fusion of human and avian characteristics, bringing the playful metamorphoses of Raven, the trickster, alive with an astonishing immediacy even though this comb was crafted over two centuries ago. There's also an exceptional 18th/19th-century bone or marine ivory shamanic pendant and a perfectly preserved late 19th-century Chilkat robe woven of cedar bark and mountain goat's wool.  

Lastly, two ceremonial feasting bowls of exceptional age and merit are also illustrated. The first bowl is Tlingit. It was created of formed, pressed, and carved mountain sheep horn and dates to the late 18th or early 19th century. The awareness and immediacy of the raised head of a snarling wolf are poignant in suggesting the animal's supreme spiritual power as a communicator, a brother, and a guiding force, as is lovingly reflected in this stellar functional object. The second is a small bowl or ladle, most likely of Haida, Northern Tlingit, or Tsimshian origin. It's an intriguing ca. 1800 item that, at first glance, was fashioned from wood but is also made of horn. Residues indicate a deeply drenched patina suggesting that it was likely used for dipping oil or as a petite ladle for dispensing costly Oolichan grease during potlatch ceremonies. 

In conclusion, the Sainsbury Centre's collection numbers are in excess of 2,500 works. In tandem with the University of East Anglia, the Centre also houses the university's School of Art and World Art Studies and the Sainsbury Research Unit for the Arts of Oceania, Africa, and the Americas. Some universally recognized gems are among the items from traditional peoples stewarded at the Centre. Simply put, the Sainsbury Centre contains a remarkable array of world art.

Steven G. Alpert, founder of Art of the Ancestors

 
 
 

1

 
 

Baby Carrier | Borneo

 
 

Baby Carrier | Borneo
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

19th/20th century

Borneo

Kayan/Kenyah peoples

Shell, Wood

797

 
 
 

2

 
 

Work Board | Borneo

 
 

Work Board | Borneo
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

19th/early 20th century

Borneo

Kayan, Kenyah peoples

Wood

803

 
 

3

 
 

Panel from a Funerary Vault | Borneo

 

Panel from a Funerary Vault | Borneo
© Sainsbury Centre

 

19th/20th century

Borneo

Kayan/Kenyah peoples

Wood

852

 
 
 

4

 
 

Oval Shaped Bowl | Borneo

 

Oval Shaped Bowl | Borneo
© Sainsbury Centre

Borneo

Ebony, Glass, Wood

1011

 
 
 
 

5

 
 

Hornbill Image | Borneo

 
 

Hornbill Image | Borneo
© Sainsbury Centre

19th/20th century

Kalimantan, Borneo

Ngaju/Ot Danum peoples

Wood

868

 
 
 
 

6

 
 

Shield | Mentawai

 
 

Shield | Mentawai
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Siberut Island, Mentawai

Coconut, Wood, Pigment

1075

 
 
 

7

 
 

Priest's Yaqona Dish in Duck Form | Fiji

 

Priest’s Yaqona Dish in Duck Form | Fiji
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Early 19th century

Fiji

Shell, wood

912

 
 
 

8

 
 

Free-standing Male Figure | New Zealand

 

Free-standing Male Figure | New Zealand
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 18th/early 19th century

New Zealand

Māori peoples

Haliotis iris shell, Wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

178

 
 
 

9

 
 

Head of a 'Staff God' | Cook Islands

 
 

Head of a ‘Staff God’ | Cook Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 

Late 18th/early 19th century

Cook Islands

Wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

188

 
 
 

10

 
 

Male Figure ('Fishermen's God') | Cook Islands

 

Male Figure (‘Fishermen’s God’) | Cook Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 18th/early 19th century

Cook Islands

Wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

189

 
 
 

11

 
 

Neck Ornament | Hawaiian Islands

 
 

Neck Ornament | Hawaiian Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 18th/early 19th century

Hawaiian Islands

Fiber, hair, whale ivory

876

 
 

12

 
 

Club | Marquesas Islands

 

Club | Marquesas Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Early 19th century

Marquesas Islands

Wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

193

 
 

13

 
 

Chief's Fly Whisk | Austral Islands

 

Chief’s Fly Whisk | Austral Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 

Chief’s Fly Whisk | Austral Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 18th/early 19th century

Tupua’i or Rurutu, Austral Islands

Coir, hair, wood

895

 
 

14

 
 

Canoe Figurehead | Solomon Islands

 

Canoe Figurehead | Solomon Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

19th century

Roviana (New Georgia), Solomon Islands

Pearl shell, wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

173

 
 

15

 
 

Kneeling Male Figure | Solomon Islands

 

Kneeling Male Figure | Solomon Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 19th century

Roviana Region, Solomon Islands

Fiber, gum, pearl shell, wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

172

 
 

16

 
 

Ceremonial Shield | Solomon Islands

 

Ceremonial Shield | Solomon Islands
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Early/mid-19th century

Solomon Islands

Cane, Gum, Shell, Wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1978

632

 
 
 

17

 
 

Hornbill Carving | Northern New Ireland

 

Hornbill Carving | Northern New Ireland
© Sainsbury Centre

Late 19th century

Northern New Ireland

Pigment, Wood

942

 
 
 
 

18

 
 

Mask | Papua New Guinea

 

Mask | Papua New Guinea
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 19th/ early 20th century

Lower Sepik River, Papua New Guinea

Wood

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

165

 
 
 

19

 
 

Fan Decorated with a Face/Dance Mask | Papua New Guinea

 

Fan Decorated with a Face/Dance Mask | Papua New Guinea
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Papua New Guinea

Fiber, pigment, wood

Bequeathed by Hugh Paget

40023

 
 
 

20

 
 

Hunting or Ceremonial Hat Ornament | Alaska

 

Hunting or Ceremonial Hat Ornament | Alaska
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Early Old Bering Sea (AD 500-750)

Bering Sea, Alaska, North America

Walrus ivory

Purchased with support from the Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Charitable Trust, 1996

1122

 
 
 

21

 
 

Wolf Mask | Alaska

 

Wolf Mask | Alaska
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 19th century

Norton Sound, Alaska, North America

Bark, feather, leather, metal, wood

502

 
 
 

22

 
 

Bowl with Wolf Head | Northwest Coast

 

Bowl with Wolf Head | Northwest Coast
© Sainsbury Centre

18th/early 19th century

Northwest Coast, North America

Tlingit

Mountain-sheep horn

Purchased with support from Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1980

728

 
 
 
 
 

23

 
 

Bowl with Legs | Northwest Coast

 

Bowl with Legs | Northwest Coast
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Early 19th century

Northwest Coast, North America

Haida

Mountain-sheep horn

Donated by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1973

124

 
 
 

24

 
 

Pendant | Northwest Coast

 

Pendant | Northwest Coast
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Northwest Coast, North America

Ivory?

Acquired by Robert and Lisa Sainsbury in 1992 as a gift from David Sainsbury. Bequeathed by Lady Sainsbury, 2014.

RLS 60

 
 
 

25

 
 

'Chilkat' Robe | Northwest Coast

 

'Chilkat' Robe | Northwest Coast
© Sainsbury Centre

 

Late 19th century

Northwest Coast, North America

Chilkat, Tlingit

Mountain-goat wool, yellow cedar bark

Purchased with support from Robert and Lisa Sainsbury, 1976

667

 
 

26

 
 

Comb | Northwest Coast

 

Comb | Northwest Coast
© Sainsbury Centre

 
 

Late 18th century

Cross Sound, Northwest Coast, North America

Tlingit

Caribou antler

Purchased with support from the Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Art Trust, 1983

875

 
 
 

All artworks and images presented in this feature are the property of the Sainsbury Centre. 
© Sainsbury Centre