Culture and history through Pacific lens showcased in Australia

Diving into Pacific people's past, our environment, and all that is connected through the ocean to ensure a flourishing legacy continues on.

That's the aim of a permanent exhibition at the Australian Museum in Sydney.

Wansolmoana - meaning One Salt Ocean - serves as the fale for artifacts from 19 Pacific nations and reflects the cultural significance to the moana.

The museum’s Manager of Pasifika Collections and Engagement Melissa Malu has fought to provide an exhibition in Australia curated by all Pacific people.

Speaking on PMN Tonga, Malu says Pacific exhibitions have long been overseen and/or curated through a Western anthropological lens.

Wansolmoana is changing that.

“They’ll say that our reciprocal gift giving is quite primitive and they put their own thoughts on it.

“So we curated this around values…telling about reciprocity and respect. From our lens this is important to maintain relations.”

The gallery highlights a range of treasures, from head dresses and jewellery to traditional fine mats and weaponry, a vaka on display and even includes modern mediums of visual installations and contemporary paintings.

Suru headdress made by a Rotuman artists. Photo/Abram Powell - Australian Museum

Wansolmoana also includes sections about Micronesia and Melanesia, weaving through the exhibition the impacts of climate change within the regions and dedicated sections to slavery and blackbirding.

A data analysis report shows around 337,000 Pacific people live in Australia and about 22% (just over 72,000) of those live in Sydney where the exhibition is based.

Malu says their aim is to connect Australia’s Pacific diaspora with their home, heritage and history.

“This is ours. We may be the ones who are feeding the information and creating this but the histories, the stories, the koloa (treasure), it is ours and we want to celebrate it with everybody.”

Even a slice of Tonga is featured with a section called Queen Sālote Tupou III, curated in honour of her dedication to the revival of Tongan traditional artforms.

“We were very honoured that Her Royal Highness assisted in curating the slice of Tonga and it’s our story.

“It was a period in time where Queen Sālote brought back our various traditional crafts and encouraged it and made it a koloa. (She) encouraged the women to value it as such and gave them prominence and purpose.”

Check out the full interview with Melissa Malu with John Pulu on PMN Tonga below.