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In Vanuatu, commoditization and revitalization of culture and the arts do not necessarily work against each other; both revolve around value formation and the authentication of things. This book investigates the meaning and value of (art) objects as commodities in differing states of transit and transition: in the local place, on the market, in the museum. It provides an ethnographic account of commoditization in a context of revitalization of culture and the arts in Vanuatu, and the issues this generates, such as authentication of actions and things, indigenized copyright, and kastom disputes over ownership and the nature of kastom itself.
List of contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgements
Introduction: Art and Commodity in Vanuatu
Chapter 1. Art, Anthropology, and Tourism
Chapter 2. Arts of Vanuatu
Chapter 3. Making Authenticity
Chapter 4. Selling Authenticity
Chapter 5. Commodities and Authenticity
Chapter 6. Museums
Conclusion: Artifak: The Value of Art in Vanuatu
References
Index
About the author
Hugo DeBlock is a Guest Professor at Ghent University and The Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Ghent, Belgium. He has carried out extensive fieldwork in Vanuatu, and his most recent research focuses on visual anthropology, film, and representation in Vanuatu, Zanzibar, and Tanzania.
Summary
Artifak investigates the meaning and value of (art) objects as commodities in Vanuatu, in differing states of transit and transition: in the local place, on the market, and in the museum. It provides an ethnographic account of commoditization in the context of revitalization of culture and the arts in Vanuatu.
Additional text
“A fine piece of work… This book addresses a range of important areas that anthropologists and art historians will find fascinating, including issues around repatriation, the art trade, concepts of property and ownership, and cultural revivalism.” • Graeme Were, University of Queensland
“A useful case study of the development of ‘customary’ art in northern Vanuatu.” • Lamont Lindstrom, University of Tulsa
