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Ngalng (Freshwater Crayfish) – Babbarra Texta

‘This is a story from Mankorlod. This is a djang (creation) story. This is the creation story about the freshwater yabby. Starting with the stone, that’s the raw one and the cooked one. The stone rock suddenly turned to ngalng, in a flash. Ngalng started growing and turned into a body. It’s a magic one and it can change from rock to ngalng to human and back to ngalng. Now it’s a ngalng. 

The country is near Mankorlod and Korlobididah. The ngalng is stuck there forever on the rock at Korlobididah.’ 

‘There is also duruk (camp dog) called Djanbokkon. This is a duruk that comes from water and no one has seen it. This is a true duruk, he goes everywhere in the country. His body is striped. He is a secret dog and he has a secret story.’ 

Janet Marawarr 2022

Categories: Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation

Name: Janet Marawarr

Language: Kune, Kuninjku

Community: Maningrida

Biography:

Janet Kalidjan Marawarr is a senior Kuninjku artist who has been creating textile-based artwork at Bábbarra Women’s Centre for almost 40 years. Also a skilled bark painter, Janet views her art practice as a way to explore color and experiment with new media to express her djang (ancestral creation stories). Her artistic journey has taken her to Paris, Los Angeles, New Zealand, and most recently, India.

In 2019, Janet traveled to Paris to launch the touring exhibition Jarracharra (Dry Season Wind), which featured her work. In 2022, she traveled to Los Angeles, where her work was included in the exhibition Aboriginal Screen-Printed Textiles from Australia’s Top End at the Fowler Museum, UCLA. In January 2023, Janet was invited by the Australian Consul-General in Kolkata to explore the textile-rich region of West Bengal as a guest of honor. During her 10-day visit, she shared her knowledge with various women’s groups, including the Bridging Culture and Art Foundation’s Kantha studio in Tushkhali, Sundarbans; Sadaf India Studio; and the Navajeevan Co-operative Society in Jajpur, Odisha.

'I saw the old people doing only lino with bush dye, no screen printing. I was 18 then and I’m 60 now, so it’s been 40 years. I used to watch my mum weave baskets, and I saw my grandfather painting, too. One day, I learned from him. I love printing and linocuts, printing my designs on textiles.' - Janet Marawarr, Artlink 2023

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