Mori Kaupa with kuman2017
Artist statement: During my recent trips to the Jiwaka province of Papua New Guinea I developed a project with 20 boys and uncles from my maternal clan, Yuri Alaiku. I have long been interested in the fabrication, design and use of the fighting shield known as the kuman. In Kudjip we gathered each Saturday to draw, paint and discuss the significance of the shield and its design, and how important it is to our culture, history and identity as men. These portraits aim to reinvigorate the discussion of the kuman in both historical and artistic domains. The men in the photographs are my uncles and cousins, holding their personalised shield with pride, as if it were an extension of their body.
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Chromogenic prints are printed on paper that has at least three emulsion layers containing invisible dyes and silver salts. Each emulsion layer is sensitive to a different primary colour of light (red, green or blue). The development process converts the hidden dyes to visible colour depending on the amount of light it was exposed to. This type of paper is commonly used to print from colour negatives or digital files to produce a full-colour image. It can also be used to print black-and-white images, giving softer grain and less contrast than gelatin silver prints. Commonly known as c-type prints, chromogenic processing was developed in the 1940s and widely used for colour printing, including for domestic snapshots. While recent years have seen this process accompanied by ink-jet and digital printing technologies, chromogenic printing still remains in use to this day.
