This is a paper sculpture I recently made for a friend, representing a carved agiba from Papua New Guinea (inspired by the stunning photograph below.) It's part of a series of embossed paper art I'm currently working on for myself.
Photo by Paul B. de Rautenfeld, 1925.
Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
I love New Guinea art and have managed to collect a few authentic pieces over the years, but artifacts from this fragile and endangered culture are difficult to find. Luckily there are some great collections to see in museums across the country, most notably New York, Chicago, Massachusetts...and here in California.
The de Young Museum in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, is currently home to over 400 masterworks of New Guinea art from the collection of Marcia and John Friede. I was there last week and spent well over an hour exploring the gallery with my jaw hanging open. 
