In September, when we are looking for gum from the Blue Gum Tree, we walk through the spinifex country. We pick the gum when it is crystal colour, and we eat it, or put it into hot water to make it like a toffee. We call it sugar lolly.
Name: Dawn Sandy
Language: Yindjibarndi
Biography:
Dawn Sandy was born in Roebourne in 1976 and is the daughter of Yindjibarndi artist, Celia Sandy. Dawn started painting at the end of 2006. With her six children now either grown-up or at school, she has been able to find the time to join the Yinjaa-Barni Art group and paint with her family and friends and participate in a TAFE short course in painting and design. Dawn is a confident artist whose ideas flow freely and easily on to the canvas. She is naturally gifted in design and has a sure sense of colour. The inspiration for her paintings comes from spending time in her country at different times of the year: the rocks, with the rich colours that pass over their surfaces at varying times of the day; the river and bush flowers. She mostly paints from an aerial perspective and has developed a number of styles to depict her various subjects. Dawn enjoys coming into the centre to paint with her family and friends.
Rugged Country After the Rain This painting represents my country in the Pilbara just after the dry season when the country is nearly ready to come back to life before the rain season starts.
Early Morning Mist The early morning mist over the water is the smoke from the breakfast fires of the Marrga, the creation spirits. According to Yindjibarndi law, in the beginning the sky was very low. Read more…
Burst of Spring Springtime is a beautiful blending of colours in our Country. After the rain all the wild flowers come up in a pattern like a puzzle. The artist, Melissa, often sponges her background Read more…