We acknowledge the Gadigal of the Eora Nation, the traditional custodians of the Country on which the Art Gallery of NSW stands.

Title

Traditional Wap (II)

2021

Artist

Ishmael Gibuma

Australia

Language group: Kala Lagaw Ya, Torres Strait region

No image

  • Details

    Place where the work was made
    Boigu Island → Zenadth Kes (Torres Strait Islands) → Australia
    Date
    2021
    Media category
    Sculpture
    Materials used
    synthetic polymer paint and cassowary feathers on wongai wood
    Dimensions
    165.0 x 4.0 cm
    Signature & date

    Not signed. Not dated.

    Credit
    Purchased with funds provided by the Aboriginal Art Collection Benefactors 2022
    Location
    Not on display
    Accession number
    263.2022
    Copyright
    © Ishmael Gibuma
    Artist information
    Ishmael Gibuma

    Works in the collection

    2

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  • About

    Art Centre documentation for this work states:
    "The old people made the wap from either wongai wood or thulu wood (a hardwood made from the Acacia family).

    A man made his wap in the kwod (ceremonial place). First, the man shaped the timber with a sharp stone or a shell. He made it to a size to suit his strength, carving the wood so the grain went along the shaft.

    I craft my wap using the method of my forefather Gimbuma Asa, who was a Saibai man. Gibuma got the idea from his uncle (father's brother) who was Wageba, the father of Bamaga. Wageba used to make a wap with a bigger head.That's the same way I make a wap today.

    The designs on the head of the wap represent my tribe/clan groups - Dhoeybaw (Wild Yam), Koedal (Crocodile), and Baydham (Shark). The Samu (Cassowary) feathers on the wap are for decoration by the original idea was for them to help the wap stay afloat."
    Ishmael Gibuma 2022

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