MUNDURUCU
The Bismarck Archipelago is a group of islands in Papua New Guinea, including New Britain and New Ireland. Its peoples developed different traditions of tattooing, masks and ceremonial dress.
Among the Tolai of New Britain, Dukduk is a male society connected with ceremonial authority. Historical accounts describe membership payments in shell money and restricted ceremonies.
Its figures have an unforgettable appearance: tall, cone-shaped heads and leafy costumes hide the people inside. Movement and dance bring them to life. The costume is more than a disguise; it gives a visible form to a figure with authority within the community.
Tattooed faces and bodies appear elsewhere in the archipelago, following different local traditions. The islands take their European name from Otto von Bismarck, but their artistic histories reach far beyond the colonial period in which that name was introduced.