The 11th Festival of Pacific Arts kicked off on Sunday (1 July) in Honiara, Solomon Islands. The festival is on for two weeks and brings together 22 Pacific Island countries and territories to share, exchange and celebrate their cultures.
The Festival is recognised as a major international cultural event, and is the largest gathering in which Pacific peoples unite to gain respect for and appreciation of one another within the context of the changing Pacific. More than 3000 artists and cultural practitioners are expected at this year’s Festival.
Check out the Festival’s website for updates and programme details. Some events from the Festival will be streamed live on the Festival’s website.
I’ve pulled together a few other online resources where you can keep up with date with the Festival.
Radio
Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat programme will be covering the Festival through its regular broadcast programme. If you’re in the Pacific, tune into their partner stations. They also have an online stream and have podcasts available on their website: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/radio/program/pacific-beat/
Radio Australia/ Solomon Islands
Festival of Pacific Arts 2012 official Facebook Page.
Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Artists at FOPA 2012 Facebook Page.
NZ at Festival of Pacific Arts Facebook Page for the Aotearoa Delegation to the 11th Festival of Pacfic Arts.
Pacific Voyagers Facebook Page.
Pacific Islands Museum Association (PIMA) is a Pacific regional forum that assists Pacific Museums, cultural centres and peoples to preserve Pacific Island heritage. Check out PIMA’s Facebook page for regular updates from Jean.
Luk Piksa “When two people see everything through the camera lenses we bring you Luk Piksa (See Picture)” Photographs from the Solomon Islands by Alex Akwai and Steve S. Aumanu.
Radio Australia – Pacific is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s international radio, online and digital content service for Asia and the Pacific. Check out their Festival of Pacific Arts 2012 photo album.
Websites/ Blogs
The Australian Delegation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists
Oceanian Expressions a blog from the staff of the Regional Media Centre (Secretariat of the Pacific Community)
Pacific Voyagers At the beginning of April 2011 a crew of seven vakas started their journey across the Pacific. Coming from all over the Pacific: Aotearoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, and Tonga the vakas sailed into Honiara for the 11th Festival of Pacfic Arts. Check out Pacific Voyagers blog here for updates on the Festival.
Solomon Islands Newspapers
Flickr
Festival photos by Tom Perry. Perry is an Australian writer and photographer living in the Solomon Islands. Do check out his website here for more of his other breathtaking photographs of SI.
Follow the Festival of Pacific Arts >>>> @FOPA2012
Follow the tweets #FOPA
An emotional morning for the Fijian delegates and community in Honiara as they did a traditional Fijian welcoming ceremony called cere for the Uto ni Yalo crew.
The Uto ni Yalo crew are part of the Pacific Voyagers seven vaka fleet, coming from all over the Pacific: Aotearoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, and Tonga. Read more about the Pacific Voyagers arrival on their website here.
I will be sharing photos from the Festival thanks to Tarisi Vunidilo and the Pacific Islands Museum Association (PIMA) on Urban Viti’s Facebook page over the coming two weeks.
11th Festival of Pacific Arts
1 – 14 July 2012, Solomon Islands
Check out the FOPA website for full programme and updates http://www.festivalofpacificarts.com/index.html
and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/festivalofpacificarts
Image Sources:
11th Festival of Pacific Arts banner: original photo via the Festival’s website
Arrival of Uto ni Yalo crew: Tarisi Vunidilo and Pacific Islands Museum Association
Updated: 12 July, 2012
[...] The 11th Festival of Pacific Arts kicked off yesterday in Honiara, Solomon Islands. The festival is on for two weeks and brings together 22 Pacific Island countries and territories to share, exchan… [...]
Congratulation Pacific People we a counted with beauty in nature with our diverse culture.
Hope that the culture we adopt and display does not discriminate any race people or culture, though we might be different in color or culture, but we are one people.
I hope that the event will continues to enhance our Unity in Diversity
Thank you so much for the links, Dulcie. Really enjoying going through them.
great outline! …heres the facebook page for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders: https://www.facebook.com/AboriginalTorresStraitIslanderDelegationAtFopa2012
Thanks Jenny! I’ll add that to the list.
many thanks and happy thursday! : )