ShareThis5 April 2011
This month, the Australian Museum (Sydney) is hosting an exhibition and events to celebrate the splendor of Birds of Paradise and drawing attention to their cultural importance and plight.
Red Bird of Paradise (Paradisaea rubra) male performing practice display at tree-top lek. © Tim Laman
The exhibition explores how they are decorated, display, dance and the intimate relationship between them and the people of Papua New Guinea. There’s magnificent photographs, film footage, specimens and even an example of a magnificent feathered head-dress, an item of great cultural significance in PNG worn on ceremonial and festive occasions.
An evening not to be missed!
On 12th April, there will be an entire evening of events. For just $20 (members) or $30 (non-members), there is a program of talks, dance, painting and music, starting at 5:30pm in conjunction with Australian Museum’s seminal arts series “Jurassic Lounge”.
From 6:30pm you can enjoy cheese and wine, followed by a richly-illustrated talk in Theatre G from 7-8pm about Birds of Paradise by Dr Clifford Frith (co-author, Birds of paradise: Nature, Art & History).
Jurassic Lounge continues until 9:30pm so if the talk doesn’t interest you, then it’s only $15 on the door. The evening is set to feature an eclectic mix of live music from the enchanting and delicate Rosie Catalano to the post-grunge sounds of Sydney’s The Dead Heads. There will be dance, silent disco, a floor talk by the artist Silke Raetze, live painting by illustrator, designer and artist Alex Lehours and videos by the Kino Collective.
Fashion Show
Waghi man and woman wearing elaborate plumed headdresses at a sing sing Yvonne Carrillo-Huffman © Australian Museum
On 21st April,the museum is hosting a competition to design and make an outfit entirely, or mostly, from second-hand materials originally bought and used for a non-clothing purpose. The competition is to seek inspiration from birds of paradise and should strongly and obviously express support for a more sustainable fashion industry and your appreciation for these ostentatious and glamorous birds.
For more information, visit http://australianmuseum.net.au/event/Fashion-Less-Waste-2011-Birds-of-Paradise
Birds of paradise: Nature, Art & History
Clifford and Dawn Friths new book Birds of paradise: Nature, Art & History is a 370 page hardback, containing 350 colour and 120 monochrome illustrations, includes photographs of living birds complemented by fine and rare artworks from the 16th to 21st centuries. It not only details the natural history of these most beautiful birds but also their place in New Guinea and Western cultures, the arts, fashions, museums, aviculture, collectable artefacts, and political State and commercial exploitation.
Buy Birds of paradise: Nature, Art & History at Andrew Isles http://www.andrewisles.com/all-stock/publication/birds-of-paradise-nature-art-and-history
[...] With head-dresses and adornments worn by the various tribes and tribal chiefs on display as well as exhibits by the original owners: the birds themselves, it is easy to see why they had such an effect on one early hunter: “My gun remained idle in my hand as I was too astonished to shoot“. So spoke René Lesson on his visit to New Guinea in 1824. A ceremonial head-dress adorned with Bird of Paradise feathers. [...]