Waumer
Date2018
Object number00055307
NameSculpture
MediumGhost net (reclaimed fishing net and rope), polypropylene, rope, twine over wire frame
DimensionsOverall: 200 × 1260 × 1100 mm, 740 g
Copyright© Jimmy J Thaiday
ClassificationsArt
Credit LineAustralian National Maritime Museum Collection purchased by the ANMM Foundation with the assistance of Sid Faithfull and Christine Sadler Program supporting Contemporary Indigenous Maritime Heritage in Far North Queensland and the Torres Strait
DescriptionWaumer (frigate bird) made by Erub artist Jimmy John Thaiday from Darnley Island in the Torres Strait using ghost-net.
Ghost-nets are nets discarded by fisherman at sea that continue to float, often entangling turtles, dugong and other marine animals, before washing up on the shore. In northern Australia where the problem is acute, local artists are using ghost-nets as a medium for highlighting the problem, creating stunning works of animals caught in the nets and works that reflect cultural stories and ways of life in the Torres Strait Islands.
Eight of ten Waumers made by Jimmy John Thaiday, 00055300 - 00055309.HistoryArtist's Statement:
"Waumer - Pirates of the Air
When I watch the waumer I can tell what the weather is going to do. When they fly high in the sky you know the weather is fine - they fly in spirals with their wings stretched out riding the thermals hardly flapping at all. When they come over land at coconut tree height you know there is strong wind coming. I like to watch them as they glide through the air. I call them pirates of the air because they are quite lazy often stealing fish from other birds. There are three different types of frigate birds all of them fly near our island. I have tried to capture them in flight as I see them flying overhead .
The frigate bird with the red under its neck is my totem."
- Jimmy John Thaiday, Erub Erwer Meta Arts Centre.SignificanceUsing a cross-cultural and collaborative model Erub Arts is leading the way in large sculptural forms constructed using Ghost Net, producing woven, wrapped and twined statements about traditional and contemporary island life.
