December 2024

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Long Neck Turtle – Nyangura

Nyangura the Long-Neck Tortoise is Yirritja. The two sacred ancestral Nyangura are found at a place called Djirringi in north-central Arnhem Lane on Ganalbingu land. The tracks left by the two ancestral totemic Nyangura, as they crawled over the land at Djirringi, is a sacred symbol. This symbol is used as a ground design or sand sculpture during cleansing ceremonies otherwise known as Bulu-Lup or Wan’tjirr. During this ceremony, water is poured over the bodies of Yolngu relatives of the deceased as they stand within the sacred ground design representing the marks left on the ground by the two original ancestral Nyangura at Djirringi. Yolngu also dance Nyangura during bunggul ceremonies. Here they may paint the design for Nyanguru and other designs. Nyangura is also food for Yolngu. It is cooked and cut according to age old tradition. The artist has depicted four Long Neck Turtle’s in this painting.

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Long Neck Turtle – Nyangura

Nyangura the Long-Neck Tortoise is Yirritja. The two sacred ancestral Nyangura are found at a place called Djirringi in north-central Arnhem Lane on Ganalbingu land. The tracks left by the two ancestral totemic Nyangura, as they crawled over the land at Djirringi, is a sacred symbol. This symbol is used as a ground design or sand sculpture during cleansing ceremonies otherwise known as Bulu-Lup or Wan’tjirr. During this ceremony, water is poured over the bodies of Yolngu relatives of the deceased as they stand within the sacred ground design representing the marks left on the ground by the two original ancestral Nyangura at Djirringi. Yolngu also dance Nyangura during bunggul ceremonies. Here they may paint the design for Nyanguru and other designs. Nyangura is also food for Yolngu. It is cooked and cut according to age old tradition. The artist has depicted four Long Neck Turtle’s in this painting.

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Pilbara Hills

In our country, we have many hills of all different shapes and sizes. When driving through country at different times the colours change and some of the hills look like velvet in the evening and morning light.

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Pilbara Wildflower Patch

In spring I can never get over the beauty of these purple, Mulla Mulla’s when they are in bloom along with the other yellow, pink and white flowers, and the yellow Blue Gum flower. It’s like a beautiful garden that you never have to water.

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Sturt Pea

The Sturt Pea has a vibrant red flower. It has a succulent sweet juice that can be eaten.

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Thama and Jinda

Thama (fire) and jinda (charcoal): When you get the marruwa (snakewood) and make fire, you see it burning, burning, burning. After the fire burns the wood becomes black, jinda (charcoal). And then the ash comes. Marruwa is the best stick to burn because it burns so hot.This is fire burning with ashes after.

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Gunga wungili (pandanus picture)

At the end of May 2024, Bula’bula artists, along with Milingimbi Arts and Culture, Maningrida Arts, and Gapuwiak Arts, were invited to attend the Langarra Bush Gallery—a three-day camp that included an exhibition, workshops, and discussions for the Weavers of Arnhem Land. Langarra is an island located a 20-minute boat ride from Elcho Island in the Arafura Sea.

The Bush Gallery provided weavers with an opportunity to create work that pushed their boundaries, encouraging them to experiment with new techniques or showcase unique skills. The goal was to foster a supportive environment where weavers could create and present work they were excited about, facilitate discussions, connections, growth, and instilling pride in their craft.

As a result of this project, our weavers produced traditional Yolngu items from hand-spun bush string, including bags, hunting and fishing items, and wearable ceremonial pieces. Additionally, they explored new approaches by creating canvas-shaped formats. This format invite viewers to examine the intricate details, colours, and craftsmanship, highlighting the inherent beauty of the gunga.

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Woven Mat

Traditionally, Nganiyal (conical mats) were used as an insect screen when erected, and as a sitting mat when folded. They are used in Ceremony as well as a functional item. 

Nowadays, artists weave many different shapes including flat, round and oblong. 

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My Design

In her recent series of black and white works, Melissa is interested in exploring painting using only two colours on a textured surface. She says: “it’s a nice change from my big coloured paintings. I spend a lot of time thinking about the painting so I can get it right from the start. I like to start with a clear idea of what I want to do. If I don’t get it right, I won’t touch it until I know where I want it to go, and that might take days of looking and thinking. I have to have the vision of the painting clearly in my mind. When the experiment has gone right, I love it. Knowing that the buyer will love it and cherish it makes it worthwhile; to make someone else happy.

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