Fish traps are placed into the river to face the oncoming fish. The woven tunnel traps the fish and prevents their escape. The traps are tapered so when they are submerged in the water, the water pressure wedges them into place. Traditionally, the fish traps are operated at night time.
JB paints stories from his Dhuwa homeland in northeast Arnhem Land. Stories are passed on either paternally or maternally, and JB would have learnt these stories from his ancestors. The cross-hatching style is a traditional painting style of this area and can represent elements such as water, air and wind.
His paintings often feature totemic animals of the fresh waters of north east Arnhem Land.
This is an artwork about a dancing Mimih. It’s based on a song line from Korlobidahdah. My fathers eldest brother used to sing this song line and Unkle Dennis he was a dancer. My real father, Jacky was a dancer as well and he was from Korlobidahdah.
This design depicts the story of the artist’s ancestral dreaming, the Djomi fresh water spirit mermaid.
The Djomi figure is a mermaid like spirit with fish tail that lives in the fresh water stream that flows out to the sea cliff near Maningrida. Djomi is a known to be a very powerful fertility symbol.
‘If you go there you can get pregnant easily. Djomi has babies, and they can give others babies too. The Djomi spirit is so powerful, that women can end up with multiple babies at once, twins or sometimes even more. The Djomi spirits lay eggs near the sacred freshwater stream in Maningrida. Inside the eggs are human babies as well as young Djomi.
Men do not go near that swamp, because Djomi is so powerful that men might get pregnant there too. So men, they are too scared of that Djomi. When we visit the Djomi freshwater spring, we can hear young Djomi crying. They sound like normal babies crying, those Djomi spirits. They are looking for a mother.
This Djomi is my dreaming, I got permission from my djunguys to paint this Djomi design. For me I always ask my djunguy permission to paint, because that is our cultural way.
This design also depicts the fresh water lily leaves, and seaweed from the base of the sea floor.
Bolung (Rainbow Serpent) is from the sacred country of Dukala- Djarranj. This is the country of Jay’s grandparent and a place of great significance, as Bolung, the Rainbow Serpent, travelled through the landscape. Rock art in the area depicts a rotund Bolung.
This design has lots of types of bush tucker including njanamaya(mud Muscle), kangodjbaya (mangrove worm) and warrangarla (caterpillar). The latter can be eaten cooked or raw.
‘Bawáliba is the djang (Dreaming) of my mother and my uncles. They are good spirits, they protect us and they recognise families. They are really tall- just like human beings, like us. They dance late at night and have a lot of hair.
In olden times, long long long time ago Bawáliba were here, before people were on the land. Bawáliba used to go out hunting and care for country. They hunt carrying fish traps and digging sticks, near the homeland Djinkarr. They go out hunting on the floodplains with dilly bags and digging sticks. They collect a lot of bush foods, and sleep together with one bark shelter.
Sometimes now they still come alive when we sleep, they might come to our houses and peep through the window. At night, they cover themselves with white clay and red cloth tied around their waist. If we hear them, we jump out of bed and get up to look -but they have disappeared, they’re just too quick. Bawáliba might knock on the window to remind us they are there looking out for us.If you listen deeply you can hear them whisper, sometimes they talk about us and might say, ‘why are those people making camp here?’ then they realise ‘Oh they are family from here, it’s ok, they are just sleeping here for the night’.
During the day they always turn into stone and they sleep. We still know that green rock covered in moss near Djinkarr, that’s Bawáliba sleeping.
Some of my ancestors used to speak the same language as the Bawaliba, but all those old people are passed away now. It’s a little bit sad for us, because no one now can speak that Bawaliba language anymore.’ Lucy Yarawanga 2019
Dakarra is the Burrara Gun-nartpa word for a type of cockle shell with prominant scaled ribs and an orange colour. This is part of a diet of shellfish which has been enjoyed by people whose country lies on the saltwater estuaries at the opening of rivers throughout Arnhem Land.
Elizabeth Wullunmingu’s mother country is Djunawunya, near Gupunga on the Bligh river. This is saltwater country. Her design Dakarra represents a songline for this particular type of edible shellfish and the fishing lifestyle that is enjoyed by her people.
Elizabeth’s grandfather Frank Gurrmanamana was seen in the documentary ‘Waiting For harry’ 1978 by Ronin films which is filmed on Elizabeth’s mother country, Djunawunya. In this documentary, the late Frank Gurrmanamana is preparing the final mortuary ceremonies for his brother who died six years before. Central to the ceremonies is Harry Diama, the senior blood-relative of the deceased man, but Harry lives in Maningrida and is pre-occupied with a pending court-case there involving his son.
https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/video/1068702275809/Waiting-For-Harry
Dakarra is the Burrara Gun-nartpa word for a type of cockle shell with prominant scaled ribs and an orange colour. This is part of a diet of shellfish which has been enjoyed by people whose country lies on the saltwater estuaries at the opening of rivers throughout Arnhem Land.
Elizabeth Wullunmingu’s mother country is Djunawunya, near Gupunga on the Bligh river. This is saltwater country. Her design Dakarra represents a songline for this particular type of edible shellfish and the fishing lifestyle that is enjoyed by her people.
Elizabeth’s grandfather Frank Gurrmanamana was seen in the documentary ‘Waiting For harry’ 1978 by Ronin films which is filmed on Elizabeth’s mother country, Djunawunya. In this documentary, the late Frank Gurrmanamana is preparing the final mortuary ceremonies for his brother who died six years before. Central to the ceremonies is Harry Diama, the senior blood-relative of the deceased man, but Harry lives in Maningrida and is pre-occupied with a pending court-case there involving his son.
https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/video/1068702275809/Waiting-For-Harry
Dakarra is the Burrara Gun-nartpa word for a type of cockle shell with prominant scaled ribs and an orange colour. This is part of a diet of shellfish which has been enjoyed by people whose country lies on the saltwater estuaries at the opening of rivers throughout Arnhem Land.
Elizabeth Wullunmingu’s mother country is Djunawunya, near Gupunga on the Bligh river. This is saltwater country. Her design Dakarra represents a songline for this particular type of edible shellfish and the fishing lifestyle that is enjoyed by her people.
Elizabeth’s grandfather Frank Gurrmanamana was seen in the documentary ‘Waiting For harry’ 1978 by Ronin films which is filmed on Elizabeth’s mother country, Djunawunya. In this documentary, the late Frank Gurrmanamana is preparing the final mortuary ceremonies for his brother who died six years before. Central to the ceremonies is Harry Diama, the senior blood-relative of the deceased man, but Harry lives in Maningrida and is pre-occupied with a pending court-case there involving his son.
https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/video/1068702275809/Waiting-For-Harry