John Kawage is the son of Mathias Kauage (1944-2003), a senior Papua New Guinean artist.(1) In the 1970s Mathias Kauage and Jakupa Ako, both from the Papua New Guinea Highlands, were pivotal figures in the development of an artistic trend that curator and researcher Susan Cochrane has identified as 'the new Highlands art movement'.(2)
Born in 1980, John Kawage is the youngest son trained by his father in the art of painting (two elder sons, Chris Kauage and Apa Hugo, are established artists in their own right). The decorative qualities, stylised figures, saturated colours and contemporary subject matter of Dispela meri Lady Diana (This woman is Lady Diana) place it in the context of new Highlands art. Looking beyond these parameters, however, reveals a very personal and innovative approach by the artist.
Dispela meri Lady Diana blurs the boundaries between traditional New Guinea art, a Western religious triptych, and a comic strip. The canvas is divided into three sections and tells Lady Diana's story, focusing on three parts of her life: maternity, charity and death. On the left-hand side Diana has been 'transferred' into a New Guinea context and depicted as a woman of high rank with her two sons. On the right, she is represented in Western clothes among people from different countries making reference to her work for charitable organisations around the world. Resembling a triptych depicting the life of a saint, the middle part of the painting is reserved for the 'apotheosis' of the adored figure; Lady Diana is lying dead while New Guinea people around the coffin mourn her death. The inscription 'Dispela Meri Lady Diana. Emi save wok long helpim ol man. Em indai Pinis' translates as: 'This woman is Lady Diana. She knew how to work alongside and help all kinds of people. She is now dead.'
Dispela meri Lady Diana brings together two worlds that may seem far apart and makes a strong statement about humanity and compassion. The artist explains that Lady Diana is not only loved by Papua New Guineans, but she is also accepted as one of them. She is identified as a New Guinea 'princess' and mother, and on her death bed wears the honorary New Guinea headdress. Although the emotional response to the theme echoes Papua New Guinea's colonial past and its Commonwealth association, the painting claims a certain degree of 'ownership' of Diana by the millions of people around the world who idolised her.
1. 'Kawage' is an alternative spelling for 'Kauage' that John has chosen to distinguish himself from his father.
2. Cochrane, Susan. Contemporary art in Papua New Guinea. Craftsman House, Roseville, 1997, p.55.
