More than an ethnic marker: Toraja art as identity negotiator

Journal/Book: Amer Ethnologist. 1998; 25: 4350 North Fairfax Drive Suite 640, Arlington, VA 22203, USA. Amer Anthropological Assoc. 327-351.

Abstract: In this article I suggest that art can be more than a passive ethnic marker. Focusing on the architecturally based carvings of the Toraja of Indonesia, I argue that artistic forms are sites for the assertion, articulation, and negotiation of various hierarch ica I identities and relationships. I trace the contested transformation of Toraja architectural symbols of elite authority into generalized icons oi Toraja ethnic identity. As I chronicle these shifts I also illustrate how Toraja architectural carvings serve as vehicles for the rearticulation of assorted sets of rank, ethnic, regional, and political relationships. A key objective in this article is to highlight the complicated and often ironic relations between material culture, identity negotiation, and human agency. Drawing on Scott (1985, 1990), I suggest that while art may serve as a weapon of the weak, it can also be a weak weapon.

Note: Article Adams KM, Loyola Univ, Chicago,IL 60611 USA

Keyword(s): identity; art; ethnicity; tourism; agency; Indonesia; Toraja; TANA-TORAJA; INDONESIA; RESISTANCE; TRADITION; POLITICS; SULAWESI; TOURISM

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