A new festival was added to our Website’s calendar. It is the Festival of Tapa being held in Tahiti, from November 10 to 23. It will be organized by the Delegation of Wallis and Futuna in French Polynesia and the Pacific Tapa Association ATAPAC.
A tapa is a cloth made in the Pacific islands from the pounded bark from the mulberry tree (as well as several species of breadfruit and fig trees), and is usually decorated with geometric patterns. In Fiji it is known as a masi. In Samoa the cloth is called a siapo.
The Festival will consist of several events planned in various locations including exhibitions, workshops around the tapa, conferences and an international symposium. French Polynesia is closely associated with this event since three institutions of the country will participate in the festival.
Museum of Tahiti and Her Islands – Te Fare Manahava and achieve, in partnership with the ATAPAC, an exhibition entitled “Tapa Oceania, yesterday and today” to be held from 11 November 2014 to 21 February 2015.
Several celebrities have been announced by the organizers for the opening of the Festival, as well as specialists of tapa, but also artists and delegations from the region. Festival organizers hope to perpetuate the Festival Tapa and organize every three or four years each in a different region of the Pacific.
If you plan to be in Tahiti during this time, then this festival is a must see!
Here is a Facebook Page dedicated to the festival. However, you may have to brush-up on your French language skills to read it… C’est la Vie.
Island Time 