Bush Flower
Belinda has strong skills in hand carving lino designs, a medium through which she often depicts significant natural plants from her mother’s country (the central desert).
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My Grandfather’s Country – Kulyakartu
Kulyakartu is a large area in the far north of the Martu homelands, near the Percival Lakes region of Western Australia’s Great Sandy Desert. Kulyakartu is mostly flat grass Country, and is known as a good hunting area. In particular, parnajarrpa (goanna), wild cats, and lunki (witchetty grub) are found in abundance here. In the wantajarra (wet season) the dry lakes in the region fill with water.
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Untitled
“When Martu paint, it’s like a map. Martu draw story on the ground and on the canvas, and all the circle and line there are the hunting areas and different waters and tracks where people used to walk, and [some you] can’t cross, like boundaries. So nowadays you see a colourful painting and wonder what it is, but that’s how Martu tell story long ago. It’s not just a lovely painting, it’s a story and a songline and a history and everything that goes with it.” – Ngalangka Nola Taylor and Joshua Booth This work portrays an area of Country that can be interpreted in multiple ways. Firstly, the image may be read as an aerial representation of a particular location known to the artist- either land that they or their family travelled, from the pujiman (traditional, desert dwelling) era to now. During the pujiman period, Martu would traverse very large distances annually in small family groups, moving seasonally from water source to water source, and hunting and gathering bush tucker as they went. At this time, one’s survival depended on their intimate knowledge of the location of resources; thus physical elements of Country, such as sources of kapi (water), tali (sandhills), different varieties of warta (trees, vegetation), ngarrini (camps), and jina (tracks) are typically recorded with the use of a use of a system of iconographic forms universally shared across the desert. An additional layer of meaning in the work relates to more intangible concepts; life cycles based around kalyu (rain, water) and waru (fire) are also often evident. A thousands of year old practice, fire burning continues to be carried out as both an aid for hunting and a means of land management today. As the Martu travelled and hunted they would burn tracts of land, ensuring plant and animal biodiversity and reducing the risk of unmanageable, spontaneous bush fires. The patchwork nature of regrowth is evident in many landscape works, with each of the five distinctive phases of fire burning visually described with respect to the cycle of burning and regrowth. Finally, metaphysical information relating to a location may also be recorded; Jukurrpa (Dreaming) narratives chronicle the creation of physical landmarks, and can be referenced through depictions of ceremonial sites, songlines, and markers left in the land. Very often, however, information relating to Jukurrpa is censored by omission, or alternatively painted over with dotted patterns.
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Minyipuru (Seven Sisters), Parnngurr area
Parnngurr, now the locale of a remote Aboriginal community, has always been a significant site for the Martu. A permanent water source and a site within the epic jukurrpa (dreamtime) story of the Jakulyukulyu, or Minyipuru (Seven Sisters), historically many families would gather here to meet for important occasions. Minyipuru tracks the movement of a group of sisters travelling through the desert as they flee from Yurla, a lustful old man. The man chases the wanti (women) all the way from Roebourne on the west coast, right through Martu Country before flying east across Australia. Along the way they stop at many significant sites to camp, wash, dance and gather food, leaving markers in the landscape along the way. The many events and interactions with Yurla chronicled through the story create a culturally rich narrative that is associated with the Pleiades star constellation.
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Ngangkin – Echidna
When I was growing up as a kid and living in Mossman with my family, we used to hunt for Ngangkin. We would see them all the time, on the side of the road digging. There are not so many around anymore and people don’t hunt them as much.
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Ngangkin – Echidna
When I was growing up as a kid and living in Mossman with my family, we used to hunt for Ngangkin. We would see them all the time, on the side of the road digging. There are not so many around anymore and people don’t hunt them as much.
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Wayuk and Dilly Bags
Wayuk (Waterlily) Nymphaea violacea.
The stem of wayuk is a popular bushfood and the beautiful flower is enjoyed across Arnhem Land.
This fabric was created using the linocut printing technique. The lino tile has been carved by the artist in Maningrida, and has been printed by hand using a variety of colours and layers. The linocut technique ensures each textile piece is a one-off, limited edition piece. Bábbarra Women’s Centre supports the economic independence of Indigenous women in the Arnhem Land community of Maningrida, Northern Territory, Australia. Designs created by the women at Bábbarra reflect strong cultural knowledge, which is passed down to younger generations through their textile design practice.
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Yam Leaf
This fabric was created using the linocut printing technique. The lino tile was carved by the artist in Maningrida and printed by hand using a variety of colours and layers. The linocut technique ensures each textile piece is a one-off, limited edition piece.
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Wayuk and Dilly Bags
Wayuk (Waterlily) Nymphaea violacea.
The stem of wayuk is a popular bushfood and the beautiful flower is enjoyed across Arnhem Land.
This fabric was created using the linocut printing technique. The lino tile has been carved by the artist in Maningrida, and has been printed by hand using a variety of colours and layers. The linocut technique ensures each textile piece is a one-off, limited edition piece. Bábbarra Women’s Centre supports the economic independence of Indigenous women in the Arnhem Land community of Maningrida, Northern Territory, Australia. Designs created by the women at Bábbarra reflect strong cultural knowledge, which is passed down to younger generations through their textile design practice.
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Status: Stock
Banana Love linen fabric
SIZE
Width 132cm, 210gsm
MEDIUM
Grey ink on White Tuscany Linen (100% linen)
Our fabric is printed in small batches and is cut to order. For larger quantities, please email us to discuss pre-orders.
About the fabric:
This fabric is by continuous metreage going up in 1m increments, priced at $110 per metre.
Tuscany Linen Fabric Care Instructions:
Hand wash, line dry, do not bleach, wash separately, warm iron, do not soak, dry cleanable (P). The ink has been heat set for longevity, however please take care when washing (wash garments inside out if possible).