What defines

B bigbrotiki Tiki Socialite Tiki Island, above the Silverlake Joined: Mar 25, 2002 Posts: 11621	B bigbrotiki Posted posted on Tue, Jun 10, 2008 2:17 PM While mid-century Tiki culture was inspired by actual Polynesian and Oceanic art (because of all the socio-historic events at the time created a heightened interest in and appreciation for Polynesia), today's "Tiki revival" more and more is creating art in a self-perpetuating vacuum, with no reference to the stylistic genre it is named after. I am glad that I succeeded in defining mid-century Tiki as a POP CULTURE genre in its own right, but the "POP" aspect (meaning the cartoon/fantasy/free form) has become the overriding feature in many recent works of the Tiki revival (especially the ones on the commercial side), while the "CULTURE" aspect has fallen by the wayside. For me, the lack of historical context and reference to what was so great about both, ancient AND mid-century Tiki culture, makes those "Tiki" art pieces uninteresting, unfunny, and fall "flat". And not "Tiki". I am repeating my mantras of "If it says Tiki on it, it should have Tiki in it", and "Not just any primitive face with a big toothy grin is a Tiki" and open this discussion with them. I do NOT want to see specific artists pointed out here, this is not supposed to become a mud slinging fest. But I certainly hope to get some artists to respond, it's getting awfully tiring to seemingly be the only one here to hold up the flag of Tiki as an art form.

While mid-century Tiki culture was inspired by actual Polynesian and Oceanic art (because of all the socio-historic events at the time created a heightened interest in and appreciation for Polynesia), today's "Tiki revival" more and more is creating art in a self-perpetuating vacuum, with no reference to the stylistic genre it is named after.

I am glad that I succeeded in defining mid-century Tiki as a POP CULTURE genre in its own right, but the "POP" aspect (meaning the cartoon/fantasy/free form) has become the overriding feature in many recent works of the Tiki revival (especially the ones on the commercial side), while the "CULTURE" aspect has fallen by the wayside. For me, the lack of historical context and reference to what was so great about both, ancient AND mid-century Tiki culture, makes those "Tiki" art pieces uninteresting, unfunny, and fall "flat". And not "Tiki".

I am repeating my mantras of "If it says Tiki on it, it should have Tiki in it", and "Not just any primitive face with a big toothy grin is a Tiki" and open this discussion with them. I do NOT want to see specific artists pointed out here, this is not supposed to become a mud slinging fest.
But I certainly hope to get some artists to respond, it's getting awfully tiring to seemingly be the only one here to hold up the flag of Tiki as an art form.

Post #386063 by bigbrotiki on Tue, Jun 10, 2008 2:17 PM