Body Politics: Tattoo photo exhibit at Peabody Essex

How do we regard a sullen man with "Alpha" and "Omega" tattooed across his forehead in dark, swirling letters, or an attractive raven-haired woman whose lips and chin are covered with exotic blue filigree?

Before Dennis Rodman and Angelina Jolie got flamboyantly inked, one could safely assume a garishly tattooed person had spent lots of time in a carnival, prison or riding with the Hell's Angels.

But in New Zealand today, some Maoris have revived a centuries-old tradition of facial and body tattooing as a resurgent expression of personal and tribal identity.

Hans Neleman has transformed Maoris' deeply ingrained body art into powerful, provocative photographs now displayed at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem.

Their faces covered by webs of slate blue lines, men and women gaze with fierce pride in "Body Politics: Maori Tattoos Today," a fascinating collection of 30 large-format color photos by Neleman.

Assistant curator Karen Kramer Russell, who organized the show, said she was drawn to Neleman's photography because of its "visually arresting beauty" and the honesty with which he captured the renaissance of a long-dormant custom.

"This kind of exhibit provides a great way to make connections across time and space," she said. "There's not just one way to react. There's some room to make a personal connection as well as experience a cross-cultural connection." The exhibit runs through Feb. 1, 2009.

The Dutch-born Neleman employs these in-your-face portraits as two-way mirrors to explore not just Maoris reclaiming their cultural identities but viewers' less obvious attitudes toward confrontational practices that raise difficult questions about racism and race.

While Maoris regard a fully tattooed face as a celebration of their long-marginalized culture, others might have trouble seeing beyond their own values about beauty or taboos originally a Polynesian concept about scarring the face.

An award-winning photographer, Neleman reveals the haunting power of "moko," the facial and body tattoos practiced for centuries by the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand.

Unlike commonplace "tats" of hearts, "Mom" and "tramp stamps" above the buttocks often acquired on a whim while drunk, getting a Maori moko requires a commitment to a long, arduous process.

And while tattoos' meanings vary according to wearers' intentions, Maori mokos are "received" as part of an elaborate ritual and consist of recognizable patterns conveying personal genealogy, social rank and status.

Kramer Russell said Maoris typically seek parental permission to "receive" moko after searching their hearts to ensure they're ready for the often painful process that can take months depending on the design's complexity.

"Getting a moko is really a profoundly personal investment in your culture in a very visual way," said Kramer Russell who got a daisy tattoo at 16. "Today, as in the past, moko can signify ties to your ancestors and the land. They can be seen as a mark of beauty or, in some cases, part of a rite of passage."

Discussing different cultural approaches to tattooing, Kramer Russell said Maoris consider moko a crucial step in a sacred ritual that binds them to their people, while young Americans often treat tattoos as a profane emblem of hipness or badge of social affiliation.

"For Maoris, getting a moko is a spiritual decision that's not to be taken lightly. It's not a random or whimsical decision. It's not an act of rebellion," she said. "A moko is a visual language you are integrating into your body for life."

Like other cultural signposts, Maori tattoos prompt varying responses.

Depending on your vantage point, one man's cultural affirmation might be another's raised fist, or even upraised finger.

But why should Maoris worry how the descendants of people who stole their land react to their treasured traditions?

That internal tension is at the heart of Neleman's art.

Wearing a neat blue suit, a handsome, well-coifed man whose face is covered with tattoos looks into the camera with steely aplomb. A heavy woman with a tattooed face bares her breast to nurse her child. A uniformed railway union official stares at the camera, his face and shaved head covered chin to crown in swirling patterns.

In wall text accompanying the photos, a Maori named Tame Wairere said, "When we first revived moko, Maori was a dying race, a dying culture. Everyone was hoping we would become a museum piece, assimilated and indoctrinated. ... The revival of moko for many of us is really exercising our ... fundamental right to exist." A man named William James Haua says simply: "My moko stands for truth, absolute truth, like a sword."

Visitors pass through the gallery: a young man wearing his Red Sox cap slightly askew, a woman in a neat suit with understated jewelry, an elderly man and his wife in sneakers and bland tourist outfits.

How would they appear to the Maoris in the photos?

THE ESSENTIALS:

The Peabody Essex Museum is located in East India Square, Salem. The museum is open daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.

General museum admission is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and $11 for students; members, children 16 and under and Salem residents are free.

Same-day tickets to the 200-year-old Yin Yu Tang House, brought intact from rural China to the museum, cost $4 in addition to museum admission.

For more information, visit the museum's Web site at www.pem.org or call 866-745-1876.