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Ancestral Connections: Art and an Aboriginal System of Knowledge
Howard Morphy
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Description for Ancestral Connections: Art and an Aboriginal System of Knowledge
Paperback. Num Pages: 336 pages, illustrations. BIC Classification: ACBK. Category: (P) Professional & Vocational; (UP) Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly; (UU) Undergraduate. Dimension: 229 x 154 x 17. Weight in Grams: 484.
Ancestral Connections unlocks the inner meaning of Australian Aboriginal bark painting. Drawing on more than ten years of fieldwork among the Yolngu--an Aboriginal people of Northeast Arnhem Land--and applying both anthropological and art historical methods, Howard Morphy explores systematically the graphic representation of traditional knowledge in Yolngu art. He also charts the role that art has played in Aboriginal society both present and past. The rich symbolism of Yolngu art links the Yolngu directly with the Dreaming, the time of world-creation that continues as the spiritual dimension of the present. Morphy shows how a complex dialectic of inside and outside interpretations of painting structures the system of knowledge in Yolngu society, and how European interest in this art has caused certain changes in the conditions of its production. The inside significance of the art, however, has not changed; it retains its dual ability to represent and to constitute relationships between things. Ancestral Connections is a major contribution to the anthropology of art. A subtle commentary on the colonial encounter in northern Australia, the book demonstrates how the Yolngu have used their art--against all odds--as an instrument of cultural survival and as a component of the economic and political transformation of their society.
Product Details
Publisher
University Of Chicago Press
Number of pages
336
Format
Paperback
Publication date
1992
Condition
New
Weight
483g
Number of Pages
336
Place of Publication
, United States
ISBN
9780226538662
SKU
V9780226538662
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 7 to 11 working days
Ref
99-50
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