Hiko

In Hiko, 2024, Manuha‘apai Vaeatangitau has created what she refers to as ‘animal skin ngatu’, large painted cow hides which reference the visual languages of Tongan decorated bark paper and the erotic artistic tradition of Japanese shunga. A central concern of Vaeatangitau’s work is uplifting and making visible the lived experiences of MVPFAFF+ (Queer Pacific) peoples. She reimagines their stories through richly detailed tableaus that draw from ancient Tongan mythology, pulling from the archives of history while critically filling in the gaps. Hiko references the origins of hiko (juggling) in Tongan mythology, in which goddesses would use human eyes as portals to gaze into Maama (the earthly realm). The work extends on Vaeatangitau’s project of visualising a pantheon of gender-fluid deities within Tongan mythology, and was produced during her time as Creative New Zealand Aniva artist-in-residence at Pātaka Art + Museum in 2023.

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