Sopolemalama Filipe Tohi

Born 1959 in Nuku’alofa, Tonga
Lives in Auckland, New Zealand

Spanning over thirty years, Auckland-based artist Sopolemalama Filipe Tohi’s contemporary practice has its foundations in the traditional Tongan cultural practice of lalava (sennit lashing). Historically, forms of lalava lashings were both functional and decorative and used in the construction of houses around the Pacific. Tohi believes lalava patterns were a mnemonic device for representing a life philosophy, advocating balance in daily living, and were tied to cultural knowledge. He uses lalava motifs as the basis for contemporary works in a large variety of media: painting on canvas, carving in wood and stone, and designing abstract sculptural patterns in metal. The application of these patterns in new dimensional forms moves the traditional to a contemporary setting.

Haukulasi, 1995-2021

mixed media

Courtesy the artist

Commissioned by the Biennale of Sydney with generous support from Creative New Zealand

I believe lalava patterns were a mnemonic device for representing a life philosophy. They advocated balance in daily living and were metaphorical and physical ties to cultural knowledge.

The work of tufunga lalava Sopolemalama Filipe Tohi redefines the traditional Tongan form of binding or lashing known as lalava. Alongside coconut sennit, Tohi uses multicoloured wool – a key industry for his adoptive home of Aotearoa New Zealand – bridging ancestral knowledge with a contemporary approach.

‘Lalava uses coconut fibre ropes to bind together the framework of houses, to join a canoe to its outrigger, to create tools as well as for a myriad of other uses. Lalava patterns were also frequently used as mnemonic devices that enabled chiefs and tufunga (cultural experts) to pass knowledge from one generation to the next. In this way lalava also binds people and communities together.

Binding and wrapping also enabled the creation and marking of sacred spaces. These ideas have evolved into a contemporary practice within the Pacific region for wrapping/decorating spaces to mark significant events. These visual markers are direct references to ancient patterns that assert Pacific identity.’

Tohi speaks about the structure of lalava aligning with the double helix of DNA, the blueprint for life, as well as with constellations in the night sky that guide navigation. The visual language of lalava is a way of telling stories and passing down cultural knowledge.

Quoted text contributed by Karen Stevenson, Senior Adjunct Fellow, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand

23rd Biennale of Sydney (2022)

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