Asmat Ancestral Figures

A Man is a Tree. A Tree is a Man. 

Before Fumeripitsj pounds his tifa (drum), he says: “Statues, O my children! After I pound the tifa, you must move as freely as you can.” 

—Yustinus Sempah, Er village, West Papua 

An important Asmat origin story tells of how the first man, Fumeripitsj, was a skilled carver. He harvested trees from the lush rainforest to build the original yeu (ceremonial house), filling it with sculpted figures to counter his isolation. Disheartened by their dull, lifeless character, Fumeripitsj fashioned a drum and began beating a rhythm that animated his carved companions. The figures moved awkwardly at first, their limbs hindered by the wooden joints connecting their hands, elbows, and knees. But the steady beats soon filled the carvings with so much vibrancy and life that the figures broke free of their bonds, rising up in song and dance. The slender, upright forms of the works here mimic the trees that gave life. Today, when carved figures are installed for the inauguration of a new house, performers dance as if their knees and elbows remain joined, recalling this first generation.