Ngatu Atlas · Pacific Material Archive
Keynote 01 Vol. IV
Register I Koka & Tongo · Two Dyes, One Cloth

Rubbed,
notpainted.

How a carved board, a strip of feta’aki, and the bark of two trees
compose a language we are still learning to read.

A working session on barkcloth, transfer printing, and the household
economies that kept ngatu alive between 1830 and 1900.

This is the Tongan Kupesi Tapa design system, applied by Curio Design — a design-style library for AI agents. Full Tongan Kupesi Tapa guide → designbycurio.com/learn/tongan-kupesi-rubbing-board