Yuriyal Bridgeman: Haus Door

Haus Door by artist Yuriyal Bridgeman is currently on view 24/7 at the installation gallery Passage in Chinatown. This site-specific exhibition is the first large scale 'tape painting' installation Yuriyal Bridgeman has executed since exploring the material of tape as a new medium. In Haus Door Bridgeman employs tape to extend his shield designs into architectural realms.

In Papua New Guinea, mythology is deeply embedded in the country's diverse cultures and languages, offering insight into its spiritual heritage. Yuriyal Bridgeman's Haus Door showcases this through three shield paintings titled “Crown". These artworks are both portraits and sculptural objects, exploring the dual nature of protection and vulnerability through urban legends.

The shields, or ‘kuman’ in the Yuri language, serve as symbols of defence against threats to personal safety, relationships, and freedom. Throughout the gallery, Bridgeman employs tape to extend his shield designs into architectural realms; designs that are deeply rooted in the cultural fabric of his Yuri tribe from Simbu Province.