Dennis NONA

Tantanu and Paopiahe - Siuai Creation Story , 2003

Art : Aboriginal
Origine : Ile de Badu
Dimensions : 76 x 111,5 cm
Medium : Kaidaral Linocut
Price : Nous contacter / contact us
N° : 2212

This linoprint by Dennis Nona recounts the different episodes of a legend dear to his people. In the time of Kupuna (the era of the ancient spirits), Tantanu (the creator) promised his grandchildren he would teach them how to accomplish a task without physically performing it. 

To do so, he decided to travel across the island of Siauia. Along the way, he met some children and told them to prepare a cooking pot; he then slipped inside and later escaped. When the cooking was finished, the children found taro, yams, and bananas in the pot. They shared these foods with the people of their village, who found them delicious. Tantanu then gave them plants to sow in the earth. 

Since that time, taro, yams, and bananas have grown naturally on Siauia - a lasting sign that food can come from the land without the need for cultivation.