PITSFIELD

The tribal cloaks, suits and coats work by south american, Hawaiian, Siberian, Pakistani and Tibetan tribes was amazing to see in the flesh as the detail and use of materials, the precession and detail is absolutely beautiful. the use of seal intestine to create clothes, deer hide and rare birds was inspirational as the techniques that went into the making is astonishing, although the use of animals and the amount that were used to create the clothes is depressing and to an extent, for some, unnecessary. the Hawaiian tribal cloak, the first image, for example, was only worn by people in high rank or royalty. these were known as Ahu 'ula's. These cloaks are made from a woven netting decorated with bird feathers and are examples of fine featherwork.Hundreds of thousands of feathers were required for each cloak. A small bundle of feathers was gathered and tied into the netting. Bundles were tied in close proximity to form a uniform covering of the surface of the cloak. however the need for the cloaks I'm not sure of, as they are purley shown for importance and for no other reason. However, i was glad to read that both species of bird used for the cloaks can still be found in Hawaii, but in much reduced numbers. Although birds were exploited for their feathers, the effect on the population is thought to be minimal. The birds are said to have not been killed but, rather, caught by specialist bird catchers, a few feathers harvested, and the birds then released. this act is, however, still disturbing to say the least. the feathers i have once worked with and creates animal masks out of have all been from local feathers found or plucked from male and female pheasants, and wood pigeon . these birds have been shot in small numbers and for food, and these feathers i used because of the waste that will otherwise be. i am a strong believer that if i can eat an animal i must be able to kill it myself, and game meat, such as rabbit, pigeon, or pheasant, that i eat from home, we know exactly where it comes from and who has killed it, so i am happy using theses materials in my work.