Eddy Baul

Eddy grew up on the island of Mataso and is proud to call himself an island boy and in his understated tone is careful to point out he is not a city kid. His love of the ocean, swimming, outrigging and fishing made him seek out a career as a fisherman and he has certainly caught a lot of fish, including a large tiger shark right out side Port Vila Harbour. When Eddy was three his grandfather began teaching him to draw in the sand and this motif is one of the first ones he remembers doing. Later in school he enjoyed art and has always liked drawing. His image has a very contemporary feel and he captures the immediacy of the ephemeral art of sandroing while bringing the stark bold design into the 21st century. The simple use of only black and white work well, again emphasising design while keeping a fresh, playful roughness to illustrate the link to sandroing where the image would be erased with a rising tide. This print really is straight out of Mataso.

The flying fox is used for many things, among them it is a designated chief’s food. The fox arrives to eat fruit on the island signalling that it is ripe and it is on this occasion that it is caught and the chief eats the first one. Other foxes that are caught are brought to other islands to use for swapping against other food. It is also offered to tourists visiting Mataso as a flying fox curry.