A New Day Dawns for Traditional Art

Artistic, authentic and immersive, Fiji art destinations like Sigavou Studios provide an intrinsic portrayal of the country’s rich cultural heritage and vibrant natural world. Covered in murals, the studio cuts a colourful figure by the Nadi International Airport runway and from its panoramic perch, houses a showroom of original art across a range of paintings, sculptural works and smaller valuables such as tags, bookmarks and greeting cards. Since the formative years of kitchen table experiments, the studio has crafted signature mediums of acrylic hand painted works on barkcloth and silk, alongside dyes on silk. The unique aesthetic has seen many pieces appear in private collections, leading resorts and the famed interiors of local and international organisations.

“As artists and entrepreneurs, we are all about innovating livelihoods that are viable and culturally authentic, creating art that captures our unique world,” Maria Rova, the award-winning artist at the helm of this family-owned enterprise said.

The family has roots in the country’s ‘Garden Island’, Taveuni, and orders their barkcloth from female kin on Vatulele Island, one of the last great bastions of traditional masi making in Fiji. Also widely known across the Pacific as tapa, barkcloth is a prized medium for Fiji’s indigenous culture. The rolls of bare, white masi used by Sigavou are sourced directly from Vatulele’s chiefly village, Ekubu. The cultivation is itself an ancient art delicately employed by the seasoned hands of maritime women. From plantation to painting, this sacred medium undertakes a rigorous and transitional creative process.

Beating the rough inner bark of plantation-grown mulberry saplings into smooth sheets of masi is a labourious process, involving unique skills and customs passed down through generations of indigenous women. Sea breeze and tropical sunshine play their part in drying these natural canvases before they are rolled up, ready to be transported from Vatulele to mainland Viti Levu, home to the country’s gateway town of Nadi where Sigavou is located. While barkcloth is often ordered with the fine geometric prints and motifs that adorn ceremonial dressing, Sigavou opts for bare rolls and makes its own applications in their trademark vibrant colours.

“We’re constantly inspired by the natural environment and the everyday aspects of culture and lifestyle in Fiji; women washing in the river, endemic flowers coming into bloom, the totem animals of particular provinces or the reef glimmering in the afternoon light. The colours and people of Fiji and their homely elements play a starring role in our art and creative production.”

Visually moving and emotionally stimulating, the authentic experiences of local living and loving forge emotional connections. Viewers and many long-term clients also appreciate the sustainability Sigavou Studios had long pioneered – value chains that support rural women artisans and their role in preserving precious knowledge and the skills of this indigenous craft.

“There is so much that inspires and informs our work, and that includes the upkeep of traditional skills and knowledge. Indigenous art forms are more likely to be preserved and revived when they’re part of value chains that offer sustainable incomes in our 21st century economy,” Maria said.

Like other businesses captured in the throes of COVID when it hit Fiji in 2020, the pandemic forced the studio to a halt as borders shut and reopened after two years. In this lull, Maria and her team used the time to upskill and unlock new doors. More so, it was a time to re-evaluate and, in a sense, find new inspiration about their next direction.

The difficulties of the pandemic also shed more light on its practicality as a tool for health.

“Art isn’t only an aesthetic, it can also be therapy and in the greater scheme of things, we believe it could also play a greater role in helping people help themselves,” she said.

“The pandemic blindsided so many people and really taught us how important it is to have creative processes and projects for our mental and emotional well-being.”

Visual arts are still a professional niche in Fiji and in the absence of a national gallery, artists make good use of exhibitions that are often supported by NGOs, private donors, and art enthusiasts, which seasoned brands like Sigavou appreciate.

“The Pacific is home to hybrid and indigenous cultures with amazing art and craft and deserves more in the way of dedicated programs to hone artistic talent and art curriculums in traditional and contemporary areas,” Maria said.

Post-pandemic projects included a large-scale commission for a rebranded five-star resort and the employment of more production artists to fulfil this order propelled Sigavou into its newer premises, boasting amazing vistas towards Nadi Bay and the novelty of planes whizzing by all day, just 10 minutes from the airport.  

And as they look back to reflect, they also look ahead with gratitude.  

Sigavou means “new day” in Fiji and as the universe comes full circle in a historic post-pandemic production, this creative hub is turning a new leaf.