This Painting depicts Ngangiy (Mud mussels) a type of shellfish; a mussel, a commonly gathered clam found in the mangrove mud and characteristically coated with coralline growth and stained partly black. Polymesoda coaxans (Corbiculidae). This plentiful shellfish is collected in the dried out floodplains, only a small sliver of the shell is exposed as it buries itself in mud, You need good eyes to find this delicious bush food.
The rainbow serpent is a powerful mythological figure for all aboriginal people throughout Australia.
Characteristics of the rainbow serpent vary greatly from group to group and also depending
On the site often viewed as a female generative, the rainbow serpent can sometimes also be male.
She has both powers of creation and is most strongly associated with rain, monsoon seasons of
Course the colour seen in rainbow which arc across the sky like a giant serpent .for aboriginal
People in northern Australia, the rainbow serpent is said to be active during the wet season.
Often she is associated with billabongs and freshwater springs where she resides and she is responsible for the production of most water plants such as water lillies, water vines and,
Palms which grow near water. The roar of waterfalls in the escarpment country is said to be her voice large holes in Stoney banks of rivers and cliff faces are said to be her tracks. She is
Held in awe because of her apparent ability to renew her life by shedding her skin and emerging anew. Aboriginal myths about Ngalyod often describe as a fearful creature who
Swallows humans only to regurgitate them, transformed by her blood. The white ochre used by artists to create the brilliant white paint for bark painting, body decoration and art, is said to be the faeces of rainbow Serpent.
Aboriginal people today respect and caretake sacred sites where the rainbow serpent is said reside. Often certain activities are forbidden at these places for fear wrath of the great snake will cause sickness, accidents and even tempests. This is not always the case however are
Many rainbow serpent sites today where people may enter to hunt, fish or swim. Milmligkan, where Ngalyod is depicted in this painting is an example of a sacred site also used as a hunting camp. It is a sacred billabong and an important resting place for Ngalyod, not far from Kurrurldal.
Ngalyod’s association with water plants is represented in this painting by tow water lilly leaves in white ochre. In this depiction, Ngalyod is pregnant, as shown by the tow white humps in body. When pregnant, Ngalyod is referred to in Kunwinjku as Wadiyal.
This design depicts the patterns of the freshwater mud ripples, which emerge after strong monsoonal wet seasons on the Djinkarr and Nangak flood plains.
These ripples form on the earth’s surface in delicate repetitive and shifting patterns. The mud ripples move, crack, disappear and re-emerge in response to the changing wind, rains and new sun.
The mud ripples depicted in this design are on Elizabeth’s homeland, the Djinkarr and Nangak floodplains south of Maningrida in Arnhem Land.
This installations shows when the djurn (black-nosed snake) are sung by a cleverman. When the man places a rock in a glass it starts to ‘sing’ the black-nosed snakes. They rise up and call the rain to create a billabong but it is dangerous as they can call the sea too.
This is the story of the diving bird ‘Gorroporra’. Gorroporra is an important sea bird from the Gamurra- Guyurra country. The imagery of this bird is painted on the men’s chests for dancing during ceremonies and funerals. Other imagery in this painting depict a water plant ‘Tjamandarra’ and a fish food called ‘Gapalma’. The language spoken in this region is Burarra.
This is the story of the diving bird ‘Gorroporra’. Gorroporra is an important sea bird from the Gamurra- Guyurra country. The imagery of this bird is painted on the men’s chests for dancing during ceremonies and funerals. Other imagery in this painting depict a water plant ‘Tjamandarra’ and a fish food called ‘Gapalma’. The language spoken in this region is Burarra.
The rainbow serpent is a powerful mythological figure for all Aboriginal people throughout Australia. Characteristics of the rainbow serpent vary greatly from group to group and also depending on the site. Often viewed as a female generative figure, the rainbow serpent can sometimes also be male. She has both powers of creation and destruction and is most strongly associated with rain, monsoon seasons and of course the colour seen in rainbows which arc across the sky like a giant serpent. For Aboriginal people in Northern Australia, the rainbow serpent is said to be active during the wet season.
Known as Ngalyod in the Kuninjku language of western central Arnhem Land, the rainbow serpent is mostly associated with bodies of water such as billabongs, creeks, rivers and waterfalls where she resides. Therefore she is responsible for the production of most water plants such as water lilies, water vines, algae and palms, which grow near water. The roar of waterfalls in the escarpment country is said to be her voice. Large holes in stony banks of rivers and cliff faces are said to be her tracks. She is held in awe because of her apparent ability to renew her life by shedding her skin and emerging anew. Aboriginal myths about the rainbow serpent often describe her as a fearful creature that swallows humans only to regurgitate them, transformed by her blood. The white ochre used by artists to create the brilliant white paint for bark paintings, body decoration and in the past, rock art, is said to be the faeces of the rainbow serpent.
Aboriginal people today respect and care take sacred sites where the rainbow serpent is said to reside. Often certain activities are forbidden at these places for fear that the wrath of the great snake will cause sickness, accidents and even tempests. This is not always the case however and there are many rainbow serpent sites today where people may enter to hunt, fish or swim. By painting this figure on bark today, Aboriginal people are carrying on the longest uninterrupted mythological tradition in the world, which has been the subject of art and ceremony for possibly thousands of years.
Mats can vary greatly. Artists commonly use a mix of naturally dyed and undyed fibre to create a striking variation of coloured bands. Some artists also incorporate different types of looping to produce different patterns and textured finishes. Each type of mat, fibre bag, basket and dilly bag has its own name in the various languages spoken in the Maningrida region.
It is well known that Aboriginal art often depicts images of sacred totems or dreamings of Aboriginal culture. However, the world of the non-sacred also provides a rich source of subject matter for Aboriginal art. Much of the rock art of western Arnhem Land for example features secular topics such as common food animals and plants, depicted because of their economic importance but also merely because of their existence in the environment. The artist has painted ‘birlmu’ or ‘namarnkorl’ (Barramundi [Lates calcarifer]). During the dry season the barramundi is an important food source for inland Aboriginal people. These fish are caught throughout the artist’s clan estate, either in fishtraps woven from pandanus or sedge grass, or else hunted with spears and fishing lines in billabongs and streams where they shelter from the sun under fallen logs or amongst the leaves of water plants.