Maia Nuku

This world-renowned sculpture is a unique figure in Polynesian art. An image of a deified ancestor, A’a was created sometime before 1821 on the island of Rurutu. Thirty dynamic figures stud his body, and the excellence of his craftsmanship suggests that his hollow interior once contained something of great cultural importance. Research undertaken ahead of the forthcoming exhibition revealed a small red feather lodged inside the statue and encouraged the curators to begin a range of scientific tests that had been unavailable to previous generations. Their revelations about the meaning and function of A’a are published here for the first time. A’a has been inspiring visitors since its arrival at the Museum in 1890, as much for its dramatic backstory as for its workmanship. The missionary John Williams saved the statue from being burned, but met an untimely end himself in the course of his work. The statue was a sensation when it arrived in England and inspired artists and poets for decades – Picasso was so struck by it that he had a copy made for himself. A’a is an idol in every sense of the word, and this book aims to inspire a new audience with his story.

Offering a fresh look at Oceania that incorporates new scholarship and perspectives from Indigenous voices, this book uses art to explore histories of expression and aesthetic innovation that epitomize this vast and expansive region. The visual arts of Oceania tell a wealth of dynamic stories about origins, ancestral power, performance, and initiation. This publication explores the deeply rooted connections between Austronesian-speaking peoples, whose ancestral homelands span Island Southeast Asia, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and the island archipelagoes of the northern and eastern Pacific. Unlike previous books, it foregrounds Indigenous perspectives, alongside multidisciplinary research in art history, ethnography, and archaeology, to provide an intimate look at Oceania, its art, and its culture. Stunning new photography highlights more than 130 magnificent objects, ranging from elaborately carved ancestral figures in ceremonial houses, towering slit drums, and dazzling turtle-shell masks to polished whale ivory breastplates. Underscoring the powerful interplay between the ocean and its islands, and the ongoing connection with spiritual and ancestral realms, Oceania: The Shape of Time presents an art-focused approach to life and culture while guiding readers through the artistic achievements of Islanders across millennia. Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University PressExhibition Schedule: Museum of Art Pudong, ShanghaiJune 1–August 20, 2023National Museum of Qatar, DohaOctober 16, 2023–January 15, 2024 Accompanies the reopening of The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in Spring 2025

Offering a fresh look at Oceanic art that incorporates new scholarship and perspectives from Indigenous voices, this book is an essential resource on the diverse nations and communities of the Pacific Islands Made up of the multiple island communities contained within Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia, Oceania is known for works of art and ritual objects that tell a wealth of stories about origins, ancestral power, performance, and initiation. Diverging from the traditional approaches that categorize Oceanic art by region, this book considers the connections between all Austronesian-speaking peoples, whose ancestral homes span Southeast Asia, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and the island archipelagoes of the North and East Pacific. A focus on the objects themselves—from elaborately carved ancestral figures in ceremonial houses to ritual regalia such as towering slit drums, skull reliquaries, and dazzling turtle-shell masks—provides an intimate look at Oceania as a whole with support from multidisciplinary research in art history, ethnography, and archaeology. Underscoring the powerful interplay between the ocean, the land, and the spiritual and ancestral realms, The Shape of Time illuminates the great artistic achievements of Pacific Islanders across hundreds of years through insightful new scholarship, stunning photography, and Indigenous perspectives. Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University PressExhibition Schedule:Museum of Art Pudong, Shanghai (May 31–August 20, 2023) National Museum of Qatar, Doha (October 16, 2023–January 15, 2024) The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Fall 2024)