Can Tiki help us better understand Pacific Island culture?
She says, however, that tiki can lead people to learn about the culture of Pacific Islanders. “We started working with bartenders from different backgrounds who take their culture and share it in a way that creates appreciation and exchange, which is a different power dynamic from appropriation.
What is the history of Tiki?
Tiki’s roots stretch to the 1930s and two proudly divey California bars, both run by men with a talent for creating myths as potent as their drinks. Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt was a drifter who opened a tiny bar in 1933 in an old tailor’s shop in Hollywood. He called it Don’s Beachcomber (eventually Don the Beachcomber).
What is the problem with Tiki?
She’s a Kanaka Maoli (a Hawaii native), born and raised on Oahu though her family roots extend to Maui. “Tiki bars are not cute.” And that’s the problem with tiki: how to honor its real contributions to mixology while resisting the parts that dishonor indigenous people, misuse their iconography and exploit their sacred traditions.
Are tiki bars cute?
“Tiki bars are not cute.” And that’s the problem with tiki: how to honor its real contributions to mixology while resisting the parts that dishonor indigenous people, misuse their iconography and exploit their sacred traditions. In a woke world, is there hope for tiki?
How do Polynesians feel about tiki bars?
To Polynesian pop enthusiasts, tiki venues are places of relaxation, nostalgia and escape from everyday life on the mainland. I've had a fondness for the genre since I was a kid in the seventies, when a member of my Ashkenazi extended family owned a tropical-themed hotel in Miami Beach called The Hawaiian Isle.
Where does tiki culture come from?
Tiki culture is an American-originated art, music, and entertainment movement inspired by Polynesian, Melanesian and Micronesian cultures. Inspired by Oceanian art, influential cultures to Tiki culture include Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia, the Caribbean Islands, and Hawaii.
What does a tiki symbolize?
There are Tikis representing power, knowledge, wisdom, prosperity and many other strong concepts. In addition to inspiring sculptors, nowadays Tikis are also very often represented in the art of tattooing.
What is authentic tiki?
Tiki purists will tell you that Tiki is the genre inspired by 1930s to 1950s Hawaiian and Polynesian pop styles, blending these cultures with specific types of drinks, food and décor. Dark woods, thatch, rattan and bamboo make up the basic building blocks of the décor and furniture.
Is tiki a Maori?
In Māori mythology, Tiki is the first man created by either Tūmatauenga or Tāne. He found the first woman, Marikoriko, in a pond; she seduced him and he became the father of Hine-kau-ataata.
What do tiki faces mean?
What are Tiki Masks? Tiki masks are hand-carved wooden masks that, in their original intent, were used to stand in for deities, protect their users from evil spirits or even increase the mask wearers' fertility and luck. They served many purposes, both in the privacy of people's homes and in everyday life.
Are tiki statues religious?
Tiki Culture and Art In most tiki cultures, Tiki statues carved by high-ranking tribesmen were considered sacred and powerful, and these were used in special religious ceremonies.
Can men wear tiki?
They have many unique cultural traditions based on their long history. One is the wearing of Hei-tiki. These are pendants worn round the neck by both men and women. They are usually made of a type of greenstone, which the Maori call pounamu, and take a human form.
Is tiki a Hawaiian?
Tiki are also called Ki'i in Hawaiian. The word 'Tiki' originates from New Zealand's Maori tradition. Tikis can be traced back to ancient Polynesian culture, which explains their influence on the Hawaiian mainland. According to Maori customs and traditions, Tiki represents the first human being on earth.
Who invented tiki?
Ernest Raymond Beaumont GanttErnest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, known better as Don the Beachcomber, is often called the founding father of tiki. Don was a bootlegger and spent many of his young years touring the South Pacific for inspiration.
Is tiki a kitsch?
The whole ironic hipster trend would be considered kitsch. Tiki isn't. There's a misconception that people are into Tiki ironically.
Are tiki torches Hawaiian?
Tiki culture originated in the 1930s in California, at Polynesian-themed bars and restaurants like Don's Beachcomber in Los Angeles, which featured flaming torches fueled by propane gas as part of its decor.
Who invented tiki?
Ernest Raymond Beaumont GanttErnest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, known better as Don the Beachcomber, is often called the founding father of tiki. Don was a bootlegger and spent many of his young years touring the South Pacific for inspiration.
Is tiki a Hawaiian?
Tiki are also called Ki'i in Hawaiian. The word 'Tiki' originates from New Zealand's Maori tradition. Tikis can be traced back to ancient Polynesian culture, which explains their influence on the Hawaiian mainland. According to Maori customs and traditions, Tiki represents the first human being on earth.
When did the tiki craze start?
1933Born out of a Depression-era need for escapism, the tiki craze started in 1933 with Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt. You probably know Gantt as the man who opened Hollywood's famous Don the Beachcomber restaurant (who later legally changed his name to Donn Beach).
Are Hawaiians Polynesians?
Hawaiian, any of the aboriginal people of Hawaii, descendants of Polynesians who migrated to Hawaii in two waves: the first from the Marquesas Islands, probably about ad 400; the second from Tahiti in the 9th or 10th century.
Where did tiki originate?
They offer an intoxicating escape from the weight of the world. But the roots of tiki are far from the Pacific Islands. A Maori word for the carved image of a god or ancestor, tiki became synonymous in the United States and elsewhere for gimmicky souvenirs and décor.
What is tiki fantasy?
Fantasy was a far cry from reality. Image. At its heart, tiki is about fun, creative drinks in a transportive environment. A new wave of industry professionals is reimagining these delicious contributions to cocktail culture, looking to shed the appropriation and racism that have accompanied tiki since its inception.
What is a tiki mug?
Restaurants transformed religious idols into kitschy artifacts and even drinking vessels, known as tiki mugs. Image. Image. By the 1990s, tiki was just about dead, as the Zombie and Painkiller gave way to the Appletini and Cosmo.
When did tiki take off?
Image. Image. After World War II, tiki took off and joined the trend of themed restaurants that flourished in the late 1950s and early ’60s. They created an idyllic setting that evoked “island living,” employing images of palm trees, tribal masks and topless native women in grass skirts.
Who is Sammi Katz?
Sammi Katz is a writer, bartender and the founder of the site, A Girl’s Guide to Drinking Alone. Olivia McGiff is an interdisciplinary illustrator and designer living in Brooklyn.
Is the tiki bar a watering hole?
Reclaiming the Tiki Bar. It is an unquestionably difficult time for the hospitality industry. Every day, another restaurant shutters, one more bar pulls its steel gate down for good. Since its invention, one kind of watering hole has seen America through its most grueling times: the tiki bar.
What is the unacknowledged problem with the tiki?
The unacknowledged problem is, that experience happened in the context of American militarism and postwar expansion — something obvious to critics of tiki, especially Pacific Islanders still grappling with issues of colonialism and cultural erasure.
What if it were pre-tiki?
Frizell has been musing. He wants to steer Sunken Harbor Club toward something he calls pre-tiki: “tropical drinking before the Beachcomber.” Singapore Slings, Suffering Bastards, cocktails inspired by the old Hawaiian Room at New York’s Hotel Lexington (it had a 30-year run, ending in 1966).
Why is tiki insulated?
In other words, the current manifestation of tiki is insulated against charges of sacred image desecration and cultural imperialism because it revives vintage artifacts and a retro design aesthetic.
When did tiki come back?
Then, starting in 1990, tiki came back from the dead — with a Midcentury Modern bent. In the current revival — phase three — German filmmaker Sven Kirsten, who relocated to Los Angeles, became an archaeologist of golden-era tiki-ana. In 1994, he coined a term for the midcentury design ethos of vintage mugs, cabana suits and replica moai (the famous Rapa Nui monoliths of Easter Island): Polynesian Pop. Kirsten’s “The Book of Tiki,” published in 2000, is a manifesto for the revival of the genre.
What is the meaning of the word "tiki"?
It refers to sacred images of gods and creation. In the plasticized, popcorn-ceilinged suburbs of post-WWII America, “tiki” evoked a lost world of palm-ringed beaches, happy natives and rum-fueled sexual release: a world as drenched in color as the 1958 movie of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “South Pacific.”.
When did tiki become retrograde?
By the late 1960s, during its decline, a politically more progressive generation of Americans saw tiki as retrograde or worse.
Does Tiki include Pacific Islanders?
Tiki has avoided any serious reckoning over its imagery or the commandeering of objects and symbols from other cultures. It certainly hasn’t included voices of Pacific Islanders. (Sloane Leong / For The Times) By John Birdsall. Nov. 27, 2019 5 AM PT.
Pop Culture vs. Authentic Culture
One of the things that inspired some negative feedback was why I would say Tiki was “inauthentic”. So, let’s start by unpacking that statement.
Colonialism and Characterizations
Let’s get this out of the way: Colonialism by Europeans and Americans absolutely was responsible for a lot of suffering, hardship, and loss for many Pacific Islanders.
The Tiki Consumer, Then and Now
I had a discussion with some peers recently, and I reiterated a statement I made in my last post – that Tiki/Polynesian Pop was a product of its times. And yes, I realize “Nazis were a product of their time” too, but that assumes I’m making a totally different point.
Borrowing and Giving Back
The idea of Polynesian Pop giving back to the cultures it drew inspiration from is completely reasonable. I think this is something newer generations can certainly do that prior generations didn’t do.
Why Critical Thinking Matters
As we create dialog, I think it’s important to remember we’re individuals capable of critical thinking and rational decision-making. Being part of a group we identify with is great and part of a life well-lived, but there will be those within our groups whose feelings differ. Otherwise, it’s just an echo chamber.
The Litmus Test
If you read my last article, you might remember the question I posed about whether or not it would be acceptable for me to open a Chinese restaurant as a non-Chinese POC.
The People and Future of Polynesian Pop
When people say “Tiki jumped the shark”, I emphatically agree. As real examples of Polynesian Pop become more popular (and harder to come by), it seems like just about anything that’s tropical-themed passes as Tiki.
Who helped define the tiki?
Donn Beach, Bob Van Dorpe, and Herb Kane put their marks on Polynesia and worked together on many varied projects their whole lives. They all shared a great love and devotion to the islands, their people and their culture. They also helped define Tiki and their form of it was an outgrowth of love and admiration. Indeed, these very men helped steer the way from the Tiki Era to today.
Why is tiki exported to Hawaii?
Mainland Tiki was being exported to Hawaii to satisfy the desire of tourists to experience their dream of Polynesia while visiting. The Tahitian Lanai Honolulu. The peak of this curve was in the late 60s when many hotels and restaurants in Hawaii and Polynesia had adapted to the A-frame Tiki aesthetic.
What do Polynesian islanders say about tiki bars?
Speaking to Polynesian islanders about Tiki bars, they often say it reminds them of home.
Why did Bob Van Dorpe design resorts?
Designing resorts so that they reflected the culture of the places they were built, via architecture, clothing, music, and educational displays. They believed people wanted to learn and wanted to come to Hawaii and be a part of Hawaii itself. They loved the islands and culture and were immersed in the history. That was reflected in everything they built.
How did you learn about culture?
You learned about it via a performance, a book, or a related item that came into your possession and sparked your curiosity. And for every person who commits themselves to such an endeavor, countless others never thought about it again.
Who was the owner of Mai Kai?
Bob brought a group of performers from Tahiti, who had first come to the US via Don the Beachcomber in Hawaii, into the new Mai-Kai restaurant. The Polynesian show at the Mai-Kai is the heart and center of that business to this day. Today’s owner of the Mai-Kai, a native of Takaroa in French Polynesia , is a former dancer in the show and it’s choreographer since 1963. She and the performers share their culture through that show and the very building itself nightly with hundreds of tourists.
Can you defend tiki?
One cannot defend all that is on the shelves of Party City, or the walls of every Tiki bar. And we can’t take any random occasion in one of those places and elevate it to exemplify what Tiki is in regards to Polynesian Culture. How many trips to a Tiki bar start out simply and grow to a love of true Polynesia and deep understanding of the traditions of the islands? The same might be said for the millions who saw the Kodak Hula Show or see the show at the Mai-Kai today.
What is the meaning of tiki?
The word “tiki” itself was taken from Maori mythology, where it’s the name of the first man ever created, and refers to the carved statues of humans prevalent throughout Polynesia.
What is the modern tiki revival?
With the modern tiki revival, bartenders are working to undo that original sin, or at least toward some form of absolution — to hang on to the fun and the orgeat, just without the appropriation. But what does it mean to create a distinct sense of place when that place is not your own?
What was the postwar tiki moment?
The postwar tiki moment managed to stretch on into the 1970s, which is impressively long-lived as far as trends go. Boredom, over-expansion, and declining quality — prefab sour mixes replaced fresh juice, while bland, generic rums were subbed in for high-quality, distinctive spirits — led to a hard die-off.
Is tiki a misappropriation?
The subsuming of anything with a hint of rum and fruit under the category of tiki is a misappropriation that has persisted precisely because of tiki’s original sin: What gave birth to it was a far-reaching act of cultural pillage, one that swiped broadly and unabashedly from Caribbean drinking traditions, then forced them into a pastiche molded by Polynesian aesthetics, all for U.S. consumers.
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Is pina colada tiki or tropical?
It might seem like a matter of semantics whether the paper umbrella under which the pina colada falls is “tiki” or “tropical.” But the two are not synonymous. “Tiki drinks refer to the ‘rhum rhapsodies’ of Don the Beachcomber, Trader Vic’s, and their descendants,” says Rafa García Febles, a Puerto Rican-born, New York-based bartender. “And historically, they were made by U.S. Americans or their immigrant bartenders to sell a made-up vision of Polynesia, the Caribbean, and ‘the tropics’ to other Americans.”
Who wrote the Times piece about the tiki culture?
They claim things were stolen, but they are at a loss to say from whom. The Times piece, written by the very un-Polynesian sounding Sammi Katz and Olivia McGiff, points to the launch of a pair of iconic restaurants in the 1930s which are revered in the tiki culture — Don The Beachcomber, and Trader Vic’s.
Where did the term "tiki" originate?
The issue – ‘’tiki’’ is a term that originated in the Easter islands, a full hemisphere away from Guam. This was the intent of Thor Heyerdahl’s boat journey.
Was the cruise of the Kawa satire?
These tomes were so popular that when a satire edition was published mocking the movement, – The Cruise of the Kawa – it was accepted as a truthful account, and the author was invited to speak to the National Geographic Society. This underscores the ersatz nature and heavily fictional component of Polynesian pop.
Is tiki bar an American cultural item?
Put another way, tiki bars are truly and entirely an American cultural item — which is probably the very reason a segment of the country wants to find a problem with them today. Share. Tweet. Resident media-basher, while also covering politics as well as the business side of Show Business.
Is tiki culture stealing another culture?
It is not stealing another’s culture, it is largely the fabrication of a varied collection of touchstones by creating new aspects based on wide influences. So much of tiki culture is entirely invented rather than lifted that pinpointing origins becomes a frustrating practice for the serious-minded critics.
Who owns the tiki bar in Archipelago?
The man working the real blender at Archipelago, owner Owen Thomson, concurs. Tiki bars, he says, have always been "three steps removed from anything actually Polynesian." At his modern tiki bar, he says, "it's more about re-creating a piece of Americana, of that 1950s, 1960s style."
What was the tiki menu inspired by?
The menu was loosely inspired by the tropical flavors he encountered during his travels. But the tiki trend didn't really take off until World War II, Albala says, when young men deployed to the war's Pacific theater were exposed for the first time to the South Pacific ̶ to Tonga and Fiji and Hawaii.
Why did tiki bars serve Chinese food?
Many tiki bars, oddly enough, served Chinese food, mostly because back in the '50s, Americans probably didn't know or care much for authentically Polynesian foods, he says. Chinese food was familiar, but still a bit exotic, "so they must have just decided, 'Well, that's close enough.'. ".
When was the first tiki bar opened?
California Historical Society/Flickr. The first tiki bar, called Don the Beachcomber, opened in 1934 in Los Angeles ̶ and it's still operating.
When did tiki bars become popular?
Let's Talk Tiki Bars: Harmless Fun Or Exploitation? : The Salt These faux-Polynesian bars first became popular in the 1960s. Now, they're making a comeback. But some Pacific Islanders say there is a darker side to these downtown slices of paradise.
Where are the faux polynesian rum palaces?
Leading this nouveau-tiki movement are Lost Lake and Three Dots and a Dash in Chicago, Lei Low in Houston and Latitude 29 in New Orleans.
Where was Mai Tai invented?
Trader Vic's claims credit for inventing the now-famous Mai Tai at its original location in Oakland, Calif. Enlarge this image. A menu for Trader Vic's from 1939. The lounge claims credit for having invented the well-known island-themed drink Mai Tai.