Pacific encounters

Feathered head
Hawaiian Islands, Late eighteenth century
Feathers, basketry, fibre, dog canine teeth, pearl shell, wood
H. 81.0 cm, HAW 80
The British Museum


Went to the re-opening of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts at the University of East Anglia and was impressed by the refurbishment and launch exhibition: Pacific Encounters: Art and Divinity in Polynesia 1760-1860. A wooden bowl, supported by two figures with shell eyes and teeth of cut boars' tusks, is just one of 270 rare and extraordinary sculptures, ornaments and textiles in the exhibition; striking giant feathered heads from the Hawaiian Islands with dogs teeth and pearl shell eyes and woven feathered helmets, all used as ritual objects. The red, black and yellow feathers came from honeycreepers unique to the islands. One, a rare U-shaped breast pendant from the Marquesas Islands seen at Tahuata during Cook's second voyage in April 1774, has hundreds of red and black abrus seeds gummed to the upper surface of its whitened wood base, all still intact.
I was struck by how modern the artefacts looked and how well they have survived. One of the earliest documented surviving artefacts collected from Polynesia is a mid-eighteenth century canoe and is in remarkably good condition. The hull is composed of 45 wood sections bound together with continuous lengths of plaited coir cordage covering battens of split coconut leaf midrib. You can even see the burn marks from the fishermen's hand lines grooved into the sides. Amazing.
The Sainsbury Centre has also undergone major changes since it opened in 1978. Designed by my old boss Lord Foster, the building is an early example of a low-energy 'green' architecture, and was well ahead of its time. There is now a new public link between the main building and the Crescent wing extension and an excellent gift shop and education studio. I plan to spend lots more time in this beautifully calming space.
Pacific Encounters runs from May 21 to August 13, Tuesday to Sunday. Admission is free.