Maori Wood Carving
From Maori wood carving to the art of the oaxacan wood sculptures, there is an immense world of beauty in the various wood carvings of different cultures. In many cases, the wood art of certain cultures helped to identify what those cultures stood for.
The early Maori wood carvings are indicative of the rapid advancement in the arts of this particular culture. Many archaeologists and art fans alike point out the Maori wood carving art as influential in many ways to the respective communities. What is interesting about the maori wood carving art is that it entirely contained in New Zealand, which is a smaller part of Australia, which is itself an island. This helped the art to remain unaltered from outside influence for years, causing a growth in the art that ended up unlike any another cultural woodwork simply because of the undeterred growth.
The wood art of the Oaxacan people is another form of art altogether, but it draws the same group of art lovers and fans who are simply fascinated with the art that comes out of the region. The Oaxaca people were a tribe that lived in Southern Mexico and the art of those people is brought to life generation after generation by the inhabitants that still dwell there. Most tourists who visit Mexico make it a point to bring home a real Oaxacan wood carving. These particular wood carvings are almost instantly identifiable. The bold colors and insane design are telltale signs of a true oaxacan wood carving.
The Tiki wood art of the Tiki people may be a bit more familiar to most people. Again, this is yet another example of a culture, when left alone, creating its own conception of beauty through unmarred eyes. What is truly amazing is that all of these incredibly different pieces all can be seen as beautiful. This shows that beauty is not some standard 'term' that stands alone. Beauty can not exist without eyes to deem it as such. In the case of the Tiki people, the wood art represented the utter beauty of their gods. While their gods certainly wouldn't be on the cover of Vogue in today's world, the works themselves are examples of utter beauty.
The vast differences in the wood carvings of different cultures show us that there is much to learn from every type of person, and there are vast differences in what people consider art. Perhaps this raises a few more questions to the more philosophical people amongst us.
