This painting is about our four skin groups Banaga, Balyirri, Burungu and Garimarra. Without understanding skin groups it would be hard for other groups in the Pilbara region to know who you are and where you are from so it is very important for us Yinjibarndi people to learn their own skin colour.
Name: Kenny Diamond
Biography:
Kenny is a Yindjibarndi man who was born and grew up in Roebourne, WA. Kenny started doing art in mid-2001 as part of a tertiary education course at Cossack. He has always been interested in art but hadn’t had the opportunity until then. Kenny has a style unlike any of his fellow artist friends. He cares for colour and dots. He spends a lot of time drawing in his visual diary to sketch his initial designs. He then transfers his designs onto canvas and uses paint for background and detailing.
Kenny has also experimented with various art forms including natural fabric dying, using plants from the Country to colour fabric, mosaic and portrait sketching.
Around 2003 Kenny worked at Roebourne Regional Prison as an art lecturer, supporting artists in the prison to practice their art. He has also worked as a ranger for Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation at the Burrup Peninsula.
It is truly amazing to see his diversity in colour and design. He has a particular neat quality about his work, taking care to dot in detail. Kenny is passionate about painting his Country and culture. Kenny also paints about the history of his people, including local events such as the Cossack pearling era and the Flying Foam Massacre.
Pilbara country The colours in the background represent the pilbara landscape with a hint of colour piercing through representing the scattered wildflowers found all across the countryside in the evening light.
Creek Bed This artwork is the riverbank of Millstream. It’s a tropical oasis where we like to go swimming there, fishing and spending time with family.
