Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

After the death of a loved one, the family of the deceased commissions a sculptor or sculptors to create, over several months, elaborate memorial carvings known as Malangan. In some instances the head of a family may contribute a form or motif to a friend or community leader from another family. 

Figures, such as this one, while varying greatly, typically represent an ancestor or mythical entity connected to the single life-giving force. The exact story or explanation of imagery used in a Malangan carving is only understood by the owner of the “rights” to that Malangan. Even other members of the community would not fully understand a Malangan they did not have the rights to use.  

It is believed that during the public display of the figure that the ancestor or mythical figure depicted dwells within the form. The final step in the creation of a Malangan figure is the placing of the eyes, which enlivens the carving. Once the ceremony is over, and their function has been completed, the figures are destroyed or sold to people outside of the community.