Culture
Art
Village craftsmen decorate many useful objects. this traditional art ranges from objects used for everyday activities such as hunting, fishing, or chewing betelnut to those used for religious and ceremonial rites, such as gardening magic. the designs tend to be rigid and unchanging. This is because they have special meaning in the community.
The Papuan Gulf and Sepik-Ramu regions are particularly noted for their traditional art. The Gulf tends to produce flat objects, such as gope (ancestral boards) and bull-roarers. the Sepik-Ramu area produces more three-dimensional objects, such as masks, house hooks, and building decorations.
Perhaps the most famous of PNG traditional art objects are the malanggan carvings fo north-central New Ireland. These are very intricately carved, painted sculptures are used in memorial ceremonies and male initiation. their unususal combinations of bird, snake, fish, and human images have influenced the work of some European artists.
Other highly regarded PNG traditional art includes basketry from Milne Bay and North Solomons; pottery from Central and Madang; and bilums from the Sepik and the Highlands.
Since European contact in the late 1800s, many fine examples of PNG traditional art have been taken outside the country. These objects are kept in museums in australia, Germany , the United Kingdom, the United States, and other coutries. In recent years, some of thes objects have been returned to PNG. One of the major goals of the National Museum and Art Gallery is to stop the destruction or illegal export of important examples of traditional art.
Tourist Art
Village craftsmen produce a wide range of objects made specifically for sale to tourists or for export. These range from simple carvings and painted gourds from the Trobriand Islands to graceful animal forms carved in othyer parts of Milne Bay and North Solomons.
Modern Art
The National Arts School , established in 1972, trains Papua New Guineans in the techniques of European art while encouraging the use of traditional designs. Printmaking has been a major focus of the school. Several former students, including Akis, Cecil King Wungi, Jakupa, and Kauage, have earned international reputations for their works.