Artwork related to Tonga Ngoma Buntibe in an Austrian exhibition


The picture shows a detail of the huge drawing (2x3m) of a Ngoma Buntibe performance of Simonga-Maliko by the artists Georg Ritter and Hanna Piksarv. This artwork is based on photographs taken at the joint rehearsals of Simonga-Maliko in Binga prior to their journey to Linz / Austria in 2009. It has been shown as part of the current exhibition of Ritter/Piksarv at the Deutschvilla in Strobl near Salzburg. Georg Ritter is a multimedia artist from Linz / Austria and has been involved in cultural exchange with the Tonga since 1995 in close collaboration with the late Keith Goddard. Hanna Piksarv is a young artist in various fields from Tallinn / Estonia.

This is a fine example for the lasting effects and impact of our ongoing cultural exchange which I wish to continue feeding into new projects like the women photography workshops in Siachilaba and the Tales of Resilience project 2014. It demonstrates the flow of reflections and inspirations across the art fields, continents and cultures. It shows also some of the appreciation which the Tonga culture and music is finding here in Europe.

Peter Kuthan
17th June 2013