Our friend A'a at the BM

Today was opening day of an exhibition of the famous Polynesian wood sculpture known as A'a. Some of you may remember that Viriamu was actually persuaded to visit the UK back in 2005, in no small part in order to visit his family tiki A'a (bottom of the blog entry from 2006). It means enough to him that his image is tattooed on his chest. The idea is that the tiki was intimately linked with the marae that stands behind our home. Well, back in December Julie Adams the curator of objects from Oceania at the British Museum contacted me with regards to this exhibition thanks to the blog and our link to A'a! We've been emailing back and forth since, there is lots to tell and even more to learn about this Polynesian icon, and it's not finished yet, by any means. Anyway the exhibit reveals new information about this enigmatic piece of art, that has inspired Polynesians, poets and contemporary artists alike. My understanding of the object has evolved enormously since our visit to London in 2005, and Julie and her team have done great work here, the exhibit looks well worth a visit, so if you're in London it's on until the end of May 2016. There are also a series of lectures accompanying the exhibition and a short book. Take a look!