Out of the Forest — Hudoq
Hudoq is the name widely used to refer to a particular masking tradition in Central Borneo in the province of East Kalimantan in Indonesia. Hudoq also refers to the annual ceremonies that celebrate the harvest and the cycle of rice-planting. In accordance with their traditional belief systems, these practices ensure the earth's fertility, the abundant fecundity of women, and the groups' general well-being according to the Bahau, Modang, Busang, Aoheng and Peniheng people.
In this rare clip from the 1948 film, Land van do Hoedo, Bahau dancers can be seen slowly emerging from the forest. They are clothed in stitched outfits of banana and pinang leaves of the areca palm (Areca catechu) whose fruit provides betel nut. The dancers emerge as gyrating and gesticulating deities to rid the land of vermin and pestilence and to appease the spirits of the rice paddies. In other versions, the creatures are fantastical interpretations of various creatures that wish to devourer or destroy the crop. Dances can last for hours and culminate in the blessing of the harvest by either the deities or the chasing away of would-be pesky animals by two comely-looking human masked figures. Order is then restored and the land is replenished.
The masks displayed here represent some of the finest extant in museum collections. Classical Bahau masks usually depict a long-nosed supernatural being with inflated ears and large often reflective round eyes. Their headdresses are usually some form of a wicker cap festooned with the luxuriant feathers of either the hornbill or the Argus pheasant.
On older masks, one often finds large pendulous earrings and naturally ground pigmentation instead of modern paint. Generally made of light wood, masks were often discarded after ceremonies. Those represented here are from the Dutch Museum System (NMVW and the Tropenmuseum), Musée du quai Branly in Paris, the National Museum of Scotland, and Yale University Art Gallery.
— Steven G. Alpert, founder of Art of the Ancestors