August 2021

Blanket Lizard

In his works Burarra artist Chubasco Pascoe depicts animals and plants connected to his country Mewirnba. Common motifs in his work include, yams, buttlerfly vines, goannas, egrets and blanket lizards. He also paints images of ceremonial objects such as morning star poles.

His work is distinctive for its graphic, pared-back style. His focus on figuration is reflective of the artistic lineage of his clan group and sets him apart from western Kuninjku artists who are well known for their abstract rarrk designs. 

Bulawana

The Kuninjku people of Arnhem Land tell of a time when their ancestors suffered a terrible drought. People living in the rocky outlier region near the middle Mann River dug wells to get water until these too dried up. Then they obtained water by cutting the trunks of Melaleuca trees called djidjdjerok which store brackish water inside. When these trees were exhausted, people were surviving only on wild honey. Eventually people died of thirst. The bones of these people are said to be those found in the caves of the escarpment country of Western Arnhem Land in the Mann River district. In the ancestral time of creation was a great drought. During this time Buluwana and her family camped at Ngandarrayo on Kurulk clan land. They were weak from thirst and close to death. The malevolent gigantic form of the Death Adder snake confronted the group. Buluwana attempted to run away with the rest of her family but was crushed and turned to stone. Today an arrangement of rocks standing in the ground remains as Buluwana’s present day form. Only her head protrudes as a prismic standing stone, the rest of her body is under the ground. Other human remains lying on rock ledges are said to be the remains of other early ancestors. This painting is a reference to the very early time, before the people died. It depicts Buluwana superimposed on the background of crosshatching with her kun-madj (dilly bag) and digging stick. She is depicted at a site called Dilebang. Dilebang is regarded as one of the most dangerous and sacred of sites in the Kun-Kurulk clan estate. Travel in the area is undertaken with caution as site custodians are aware of the ancestral power of the area. The billabong at Dilebang is near escarpment country rich in rock art and with a high concentration of sacred sites. The use of rarrk (crosshatching) all over the surface of the bark painting creates a shimmering effect, which imbues the image with a spiritual power.

Coil Basket

Coiling technique was introduced in the 1920s at Goulburn Island to the Maung people by missionaries and quickly spread to the mainland. Many artists produce coiled baskets of varied shapes, ranging from small round baskets to large oval baby baskets made from dyed pandanus. Artists combine colours and patterns to obtain intricate new graphic patterns.

Buluwana at Dilebang

The Kuninjku people of Arnhem Land tell of a time when their ancestors suffered a terrible drought. People living in the rocky outlier region near the middle Mann River dug wells to get water until these too dried up. Then they obtained water by cutting the trunks of Melaleuca trees called djidjdjerok which store brackish water inside. When these trees were exhausted, people were surviving only on wild honey. Eventually people died of thirst. The bones of these people are said to be those found in the caves of the escarpment country of Western Arnhem Land in the Mann River district. In the ancestral time of creation was a great drought. During this time Buluwana and her family camped at Ngandarrayo on Kurulk clan land. They were weak from thirst and close to death. The malevolent gigantic form of the Death Adder snake confronted the group. Buluwana attempted to run away with the rest of her family but was crushed and turned to stone. Today an arrangement of rocks standing in the ground remains as Buluwana’s present day form. Only her head protrudes as a prismic standing stone, the rest of her body is under the ground. Other human remains lying on rock ledges are said to be the remains of other early ancestors. This painting is a reference to the very early time, before the people died. It depicts Buluwana superimposed on the background of crosshatching with her kun-madj (dilly bag) and digging stick. She is depicted at a site called Dilebang. Dilebang is regarded as one of the most dangerous and sacred of sites in the Kun-Kurulk clan estate. Travel in the area is undertaken with caution as site custodians are aware of the ancestral power of the area. The billabong at Dilebang is near escarpment country rich in rock art and with a high concentration of sacred sites. The use of rarrk (crosshatching) all over the surface of the bark painting creates a shimmering effect, which imbues the image with a spiritual power.

Mako (didjeridu)

Arnhem Land and the Top End of the Northern Territory is the traditional home of the didjeridu, a rhythmic wind instrument used by Aboriginal people of the region. Its use spread globally in part because the instrument was adopted by world music enthusiasts, and the profile of the instrument reached new heights through Aboriginal rock bands from Arnhem Land, such as Yothu Yindi. It’s an instrument that is now played around the world, in genres ranging from classical to hip hop. The didjeridu has come to mean many different things to people who have a reason for playing it around the world. In Maningrida it remains primarily an instrument of song accompaniment used in public ceremony. The manner of playing provides an instant recognition to listeners of both language and regional stylistic affiliation. In the wake of the development of new non-Aboriginal ‘world’ styles of playing the instrument, Arnhem Land styles of playing take on new meaning as markers of the cultural and historical origins of the didjeridu. All of the language groups of the Maningrida region have their own musical genres and song series in which the didjeridu is used as an instrument of accompaniment. Traditionally, it is primarily a secular instrument used in song genres that are performed for two main types of public ceremony: the music of diplomacy (exchange) ceremonies and of funerals and some mortuary rituals. The didjeridu is generally not used as a solo instrument and nor is it used in the most secret and sacred ceremonies still practiced in the western and central Arnhem Land region. Aboriginal people living today in the rocky escarpment country of western Arnhem Land say that humans were first shown and taught to play the didjeridu by spirit beings who live among the dark caves and crevices of the stone country. These beings are known as mimih and are said to be tall and slender with necks so fragile they are easily snapped by the gentlest of breezes. Because of this, mimih live inside their own worlds within the rock. Mimih are credited with teaching Aboriginal people of the stone country about the foundations of stone country culture, including how to play the didjeridu. Many of the stone country language groups today describe their song and dance genres as mimih. Researchers of Arnhem Land rock art have identified depictions of the didjeridu as belonging to the most recent phase of rock art, commencing around 1500 years ago. Aboriginal names Maningrida is a highly multilingual community and the linguistic diversity of western Arnhem Land is reflected in the various names used for the didjeridu. Here are the names for the instrument in the languages of the Maningrida region: Ndjébbana (the language of the Kunibídji people) – ngalidjbinja Kunwinjku, Kune, Kuninjku – mako [mago] Rembarrnga – liddung, djalubbu Burarra, Gun-nartpa – ngorla Dangbon, Dalabon – morlo Djinang, Wurlaki – wuyimbarl Nakkara – ngunebobanja Gurrgoni – mudburuja Gundjeihmi (and also Kune) – morle Process The didjeridu-maker looks through bushland for a tree of the right species with the right diameter trunk. Most didjeridus in the Maningrida region are made from young trunks of the stringybark tree (Eucalyptus tetradonta) or the Darwin Woollybutt (Eucalyptus miniata). The trunk needs to have been lived in and hollowed out by termites. To listen for hollowness, a tree with potential is stripped of a small patch of bark and the timber is tapped. The sound produced indicates the quality of the instrument the trunk will become. Having selected a good tree, the artist fells it and cleans out the hollow inside of the trunk, usually by ramming out any termite debris with a stick or pole. He strips all the bark off the outside, and smooths both ends. Traditionally, dark wax resin (cerumen or, in Kunwinjku and Rembarrnga languages, birdi) from native bees is applied to the mouthpiece. This substance sets hard but always becomes soft and pliable under pressure, enabling an airtight seal when playing. Styles In the Maningrida region, didjeridus are made to accompany songs in either of two styles: the bunggurl style of the language groups of eastern Arnhem Land (such as Bararra) or the kun-borrk style of language groups in the west of Arnhem Land (including Kunwinjku). People of central and south-western Arnhem Land whose country borders east and west (Rembarrnga and Kune), perform both styles. Didjeridus of the region range in length from just under one metre to two metres. A less flared and longer didjeridu (1.5–2m) makes it easier to produce the characteristic hooted overblown tone that is used in bunggurl-style music. Longer didjeridus have a deeper tone than shorter didjeridus, and more resonance. To play them, you vibrate your lips at a lower frequency than you need to for a shorter didjeridu. The decoration applied to the instrument can indicate its intended use. Rembarrnga artist Bob Burruwal often uses a design called bedjekbedjek. This is the same design used in body painting for the public diplomacy ceremonies of the Rembarrnga (and many other kun-borrk dance performances). Burruwal slaps wet white ochre over the surface of the instrument with his hands or with a bunch of leaves dipped in the ochre.  

Wyarra

Wayarra/Wyarra is a spirit in the darkness that makes people very frightened. It is unseen but you feel scared when he is near you. It is something that you can’t normally see; but you can see skeleton shapes of the Wayarra/Wyarra if you are a witch doctor. It floats around at night and can appear as a floating white skeleton. They take their skin off to wash. These spirits can be frightening in appearance, however they usually stay away from humans.
A result of being a ‘clever man’ or a traditional healer, is they can commune with the Wayarra/Wyarra. It is also believed that the Wayarra/Wyarra can endow humans with the power to heal.

The ghost-like spirits are an integral part of Aboriginal cosmology in the western and central parts of Arnhem land. Some of the clans have the Wayarra/Wyarra as their clan totem and there are also dreaming sites for Wayarra/Wyarras and if you break or move rocks on those sites, there will be Wayarra/Wyarras everywhere. Wayarra/Wyarras prefer darkness.
Arnhem land is divided into clans or moieties. All living things, lands, clans, people, the natural and supernatural are classed as either one or the other of two moieties in Kununjku. duwa or yirridjdja. The duwa patrimony Wayarra cant walk around if the moon is shining. If they see the thin crescent just after the new moon, they have to put their heads down so they cant see the moon or their necks break. The yirridjdja patrimoiety Wayarra behave differently, they can walk about anytime.

You can hear them calling at night sometimes, they sound like the Curlew or they may even visit you! They look after you if you are lost by yourself. They can even follow you home until you are close to your home before they let you go.

Wyarra

Wayarra/Wyarra is a spirit in the darkness that makes people very frightened. It is unseen but you feel scared when he is near you. It is something that you can’t normally see; but you can see skeleton shapes of the Wayarra/Wyarra if you are a witch doctor. It floats around at night and can appear as a floating white skeleton. They take their skin off to wash. These spirits can be frightening in appearance, however they usually stay away from humans.
A result of being a ‘clever man’ or a traditional healer, is they can commune with the Wayarra/Wyarra. It is also believed that the Wayarra/Wyarra can endow humans with the power to heal.

The ghost-like spirits are an integral part of Aboriginal cosmology in the western and central parts of Arnhem land. Some of the clans have the Wayarra/Wyarra as their clan totem and there are also dreaming sites for Wayarra/Wyarras and if you break or move rocks on those sites, there will be Wayarra/Wyarras everywhere. Wayarra/Wyarras prefer darkness.
Arnhem land is divided into clans or moieties. All living things, lands, clans, people, the natural and supernatural are classed as either one or the other of two moieties in Kununjku. duwa or yirridjdja. The duwa patrimony Wayarra cant walk around if the moon is shining. If they see the thin crescent just after the new moon, they have to put their heads down so they cant see the moon or their necks break. The yirridjdja patrimoiety Wayarra behave differently, they can walk about anytime.

You can hear them calling at night sometimes, they sound like the Curlew or they may even visit you! They look after you if you are lost by yourself. They can even follow you home until you are close to your home before they let you go.