Art of the Ancestors - a tribal art exhibition Sep/Oct 2007

Art of the Ancestors is a tribal art exhibition showcasing exquisite artefacts on loan from private collectors in Singapore. It displays artefacts found in various Southeast Asian tribes, particularly of theBatak, Nias, and Daya. The ideology of relating to the ancestors is a constant occurrence not only in these tribes but throughout Asia (e.g. the Taoist would display the ancestors’ altar tablets in front of their houses). This exhibition highlights the reverence relationship the living have for their ancestors – especially if ‘speaking’ to the ancestors is a daily affair. This relationship serves powerful social and ritual functions: honouring ancestors, establishing and marking changes in social status, linking daily routines with the supernatural, aiding the sick, ensuring fertility, etc… The tradition of ancestor veneration continues among Southeast Asian tribal groups to this day. Over many centuries, each group has developed its own distinct ancestor-related customs and art styles. Each produces distinctive sculptures to house the spirits of ancestors whom they believe can be powerful allies in the struggle to survive and prosper. Showcasing artefacts essential to religious rituals as such the hampatong (memorial post or territory marker) and si gale gale(funeral puppet), to daily tools and decorations such as the singa(wooden figure found in traditional household to ward off evil) and tun tuns (pig trap stick), Art of the Ancestors thus projects the cosmological relationship of the tribal cultures with its ancestors, which is a daily ritual.