Aloï Pilioko was born in 1935 on Wallis (Uvea) Island. He moved to New Hebrides (now Vanuatu) in 1956, and then New Caledonia. It was there in 1959, where he met Nicolai Michoutouchkine, who had just opened up his art center. Michoutouchkine recognized Pilioko's native talent, and encouraged him to cultivate and expand it into the blend of Polynesian and Western modes that has characterized Pilioko's work ever since.

 

In cooperation with Michoutouchkine; Pilioko has worked and exhibited throughout the South Pacific and Southeast Asia, including Fiji, Tonga, Tahiti, New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, as well as Japan, Morocco, Paris, Portugal, Switzerland, Sweden and Moscow. Particularly in the Polynesian and Melanesian locales; Pilioko has studied and worked with the local artisans, incorporating their techniques into his work. In 1978 Pilioko was awarded a gold medal by the University of the South Pacific.