MPA#1 Opening Night
M PA
What's in a Name?
by Rachel Smith
Photos Bergman Gallery & Turama Photography
What is modern Pacific art? It’s the past and the future, a
collective of people, ideas and approaches. It is a celebration
of Pacific Art as a contemporary art form in
its own right. And it is an evolution of Bergman Gallery.
“MPA#1 is a statement of place - a statement of the gallery’s
philosophy,” says Ben Bergman, Director of Bergman Gallery.
“The type of art we want to foster, develop and to take to
the world.”
When Ben first stepped into the role of director back in 2001,
it was to lead the direction of Beachcomber Contemporary
Art (BCA), as the gallery was then known. It started, and
continues, with a strong base of Cook Islands and Pacific
artists, many of whom have spanned the gallery’s life journey.
“Mark Cross was there right at the start when BCA first began
– he had an important impact,” says Bergman, with Cross’s
beachscape/figurative works from this time included in private
collections in the Cook Islands, and a more recent
work featured in MPA#1.
As the direction of the gallery developed and changed, the
need for a purpose built exhibition space became clear. This was
constructed in 2009, and allowed the gallery the capacity to
host shows to rival international exhibitions. In 2016,
the gallery evolved into Bergman Gallery, with a strong focus
on showcasing Pacific art in all its forms - contemporary
and traditional.
MPA#1 is the first show that brings together all the artists
represented by Bergman Gallery: Andy Leleisi’uao, Benjamin
Work, Tungane Broadbent, Reuben Paterson, Michel Tuffery,
Nanette Lela’uau, Mark Cross, Mahiriki Tangaroa and Sylvia
Marsters and there are some new faces to Bergman Gallery,
with Julian Hooper, Brendan Kitto and Raymond Sagapolutele.
The full complement of 12 artists in the show are some of the
best in the Pacific.
40 • Escape Magazine
Modern Pacific art does not exclude traditional forms. The
striking Tivaivai by Tungane Broadbent is an art form that
has long existed in the Cook Islands. Her Tivaivai Manu was
completed over 6 months, and features an intricate design of
white on blue based on the Hawaiian pattern of a silversword
plant. Broadbent says Bergman saw the completed Tivaivai in
her home, and liked it so much he asked her to include it in the
show.
“The cutting is not hard,” says Broadbent, although this is a
statement made after decades of experience. “I like my Tivaivai
with a border on the sides as well.”
MPA#1 Installation, Mahiriki Tangaroa and
Michel Tuffery
The work of
Mahiriki Tangaroa
brings another
approach, and
for the artist the
chance to push
the boundaries of
her own practice
alongside a return to
painting full time.
“It was the opportunity to produce a large scale piece,” she says,
something she had been working towards. The experience was
one of freedom to work on a larger piece of canvas to complete
one section at time and discover the shape of the painting in its
entirety. “With every exhibition it’s the opportunity to make a
statement. I started and it just flowed.”
Her painting, Indefinite Deliberations Harnessed by God, is
about discussions and conversations that take place in the
Cook Islands. “They tend to circulate,” Tangaroa says, long and
thoughtful conversations that are often politically motivated
and seek change.
MPA#1 then, is what modern Pacific art can represent: a wall of