Intersections

Kastom, Art, Spirits, and Knowledge in Papua New Guinea

In Tok Pisin, the national language of Papua New Guinea, the word kastom (derived from the English custom) coveys the full body of traditional practices and understandings inherited from the ancestors. Those who follow kastom are alert to a natural world of spirits that surrounds their communities and influences their daily lives.

Much of the art of Papua New Guinea relates to this spirit world. Since kastom is unwritten, works of art form an important means of recalling and transmitting knowledge about spirits and their place in ritual. Among the examples on view are paintings that depict stories of spirits, masks that people wear during ceremonies to impersonate spirits, and even instruments that make the sounds of the spirit beings.

The oldest works shown here were made with stone tools at a time before modernization began to impact communities in New Guinea and kastom had no rival. More recent items were made by artists who were fully aware of the growing international markets for their arts.