Lost in the sandbar (Ilma - ceremonial emblem)
Roy WIGGAN: artist
Illma is an all embracing term covering both open ceremonies performed by the Bardi and other Dampier Peninsula peoples. Iilma are composed and owned by individual men. They come to this ownership through inheritance of dance that they have received from the Rai spirits of dead men. Throughout most of Australia, constructed dance objects like these are taboo or secret. However, in this region they are used in public dances and ceremonies. When uses they are dramatic, echoing the epic nature of the 10 meter tides and landscape. Tides are a central feature of songs and symbolism in Bardi life.
Title
Lost in the sandbar (Ilma - ceremonial emblem)
Artist/Maker and role
Roy WIGGAN: artist
Date
1993
Medium
wood, synthetic polymer paint, wool and cotton
Measurements
40.5 x 121.5 cm (irregular)
Credit line
Purchased 1993
© Roy Wiggan, 1993
The State Art Collection, The Art Gallery of Western Australia
Accession number
1993/0097