Rebecca Hossack Gallery and Alcheringa Gallery present: Hailans to Ailans

Hailans to Ailans
Part 1: September 16 - October 17, 2009, The Rebecca Hossack Gallery, London, UK
Opening Reception: Wednesday, September 16, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Performance by Michael Mel and Rosanna Raymond: Thursday, September 24, 6:30 p.m.

Part 2: November 5 - November 26, 2009, Alcheringa Gallery, Victoria, Canada
Opening Reception: Thursday, November 5, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.

In the autumn of 2009, a ground breaking international exhibition entitled Hailans to Ailans, will showcase
five major artists from Papua New Guinea. This effort will be realized through exhibitions presented at
The Rebecca Hossack Gallery in London, UK and Alcheringa Gallery in Victoria, Canada, by these artists
and will include a program of gallery events and outreach visits to the community at each location. As one
of the exhibition locations, Vancouver Island, lies in the territory of the Coast Salish people of Canada, two
leading Coast Salish artists have been invited to participate at both locations, further enhancing opportunities
for cross-cultural sharing.

The title of this exhibition, in Melanesian Pidgin means Highlands to Islands, and will represent
both male and female artists from the different regions, and will feature work in a variety of
media including sculpture in wood and metal, performance and fibre art, and painting. As artists
struggle to retain the rich artistic heritage being challenged by the forces of modernization, this
cultural project will promote global recognition of the meanings, values and diversity of Papua
New Guinea contemporary visual arts.

Alcheringa Gallery has a long history of involvement with aboriginal people on both sides of the
Pacific. For over twenty years the gallery has promoted the work of individual artists from
various parts of the Pacific Rim including the Canadian Northwest Coast, Australia, the Solomon
Islands, the Torres Strait and Papua New Guinea. Many of these artists have become familiar
names to a widening group of international collectors, but their participation in this international
exhibition, which will receive greater critical focus, marks a major milestone in their careers.
Funding for this exhibition has been provided by the Christensen Fund in San Francisco, and
the NASFUND in Papua New Guinea, and will assist in bringing the artists to the events
surrounding the openings at both venues, and allow a direct understanding of the artists and
their unique cultural experiences.

A catalogue designed to disseminate knowledge of the styles and meanings of contemporary
PNG art will be produced to accompany the exhibition, and include essays by leading Oceanic
scholars.

For more information, please visit www.hailanstoailans.com.

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS
From Papua New Guinea
Dr. Michael Mel Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Goroka, and also a peforming artist as well as co-curator of the exhibition.
Martin Morububuna a painter living in the city of Port Moresby, originally from the Trobriand Islands.
Tom Deko a metal sculptor presently affiliated with the University of Goroka.
Cathy Kata a fibre artist and creator of a fashion range known as Bilum Wear, currently living in Goroka.
Claytus Iambon a master carver from Korogo Village on the Sepik River.

From the Northwest Coast
Leslie Sam (lessLIE) a painter in the Salish tradition.
John Marston an innovative wood sculptor working in the Salish traditions. He has visited Papua New Guinea and worked with mastercarvers there.

CURATORS
Dr. Michael Mel
Dr. Pamela Rosi

FUNDERS
The Christensen Fund
NASFUND

For more information and a full schedule of events visit www.hailanstoailans.com.