Png Legends In Colour

Kurt Pfund and \Rigby Limited have done it again! Yes, another book of surprisingly-pleasing prints of Kurt’s very pleasing paintings.

The book is Legends of Papua New Guinea, published by Rigby Limited and prepared from paintings Kurt Pfund has done over a period of time, most in private collections, with accompanying stories by Jack McCarthy. And the result is highly successful, beautifully printed in Hong Kong and a gift at $4.95. The book is published by Rigby in con junction with Robert Brown and Associates in Papua New Guinea.

I have said before all I can say about Kurt’s paintings: they are in themselves not only pleasing to the eye, colourful and exciting, a record of life in Papua New Guinea. I consider that they are the visual captivation of the spirit of the people among whom Kurt has chosen to live, and of all the hordes of paintings I have seen by artists in New Guinea (either there for a long time or just passing through) his are among those of three or four which in my opinion are outstanding, and hold the spirit of a people as well as being an in teresting representation of physical form. The book is worth buying for the prints in it alone.

Jack McCarthy is always readable. 1 find him readable even on those occasions when I disagree with him.

At this time, however, there is no thing with which to disagree for the legends which share the book are written convincingly and have a genuine atmosphere. They have been re-told in easily-read English which retains an aura of the verbal recount ing which Jack must often have heard and the sounds of the telling of which in many districts of Papua New Guinea will remain in my auditory memory forever.

For those not fortunate enough to have heard the recounting of legends by the old men of the village, Jack McCarthy has given them the nearest approach I have come upon yet of the real thing.

There is an interesting list of acknowledgements of source material, and no attempt to indicate anything like private possession of the legends.

This acknowledgement of sources, be sides sustaining the authenticity of the material, is a bibliography of interest to anyone wishing to study further this facet of Melanesian life.

The combination of Jack McCarthy’s authentically-told legends

with Kurt Pfund’s skilful paintings make a book worth having, and a book which makes a better reminder of Papua New Guinea than some of the spurious artifacts and hand crafts parading as genuine and offer ing their travesty at high prices.

Indeed, the indigene who does not buy the book as a record of his own culture may one day regret not hav ing done so. I recommend Legends of Papua New Guinea, Paintings by Kurt Pfund, Text by Jack McCarthy to residents leaving Papua New Guinea, and those who will live there for the rest of their lives, for memories of what may be passing away, and to those who are finding Papua New Guinea for the first time as an authentic introduction to some thing more than merely its moral life.

Peter Livingston.

(Legends Of Papua New Guinea

Paintings by Kurt Pfund. text by Jack McCarthy. Rigby Ltd. $4.95.»

Collecting Books

good practical common sense in Seumas Stewart’s Book Collecting: A Beginner’s Guide, for anybody with even a small collection of books. While he’s entertaining on such exotica as collecting fine bind ings and first editions, which is not open to all of us, his real value is in giving us basic information on caring for books and indexing them, and telling us about page sizes and abbreviations to be found in cata logues. About indexing, for instance: “Elaborate methods may profitably be ignored. A man who is sufficiently intelligent to become a book collec tor should have wit enough to devise his own author and title card-index system. Even if it is an ill-favoured thing it will be his own and he will know how to use it.’’ About mutila tion of endpapers: “One of the worst crimes committed against books.

Fear of black magic seems still to linger in the minds of apparently civilised people. When they come to sell books on which their names have been written, they are so terri fied lest the names fall into the hands of sorcerers who will work evil against them that they tear out the endpapers which bear the names.’’

The handsomely-produced volume is published by David and Charles, our copy from A. H. and A. W. Reed Pty Ltd, $8.50.