The visual and beyond: The sensory experience of masked performances in New Ireland, Papua New Guinea

My work examines masks in New Ireland, Papua New Guinea. Masks have obvious visual elements. Yet, to truly understand and convey what masks are, it is necessary to look at how they interact with our other senses (that is, the five senses we know, and beyond).

For those performing, the visual field is often highly muted and altered. Indeed, the aural is augmented: in the form of surrounding voices or the beat of the music. As are senses that do not fit into one of our five western senses, that is sensations relating to: heat, pain, muscles and heart rate. Further, preparations for masked performances involve practices such as fasting and rubbing magical substances on the body. As such, the olfactory and sensations of hunger must also be included in the felt experience of masking. Even for the audience, the visual element is also not always the most important. An extreme example is unseeing audiences. In these cases, performances, however visually spectacular, are still designed for these spectators and spectators enjoy the performances. In these cases, the auditory and the felt atmosphere take on primary roles. Even seeing audiences do not experience the visual separately from other sensations.

It is essential to look at the various senses that are a part of how a performance is experienced and understood by both performers and audience. This then needs to be transferred to an academic audience: I propose that this can be done through traditional use of photos accompanied by descriptive writing, but also further built on through the creation of exhibits, virtual realities, audio documentaries, and other mediums that allow for the inclusion and transmission of other sensory experiences. As it is only by examining how these come together in very particular combinations that we can get at the role and meaning of masked performances.