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Kunkurra (Spiral Wind)

‘My designs, they are all alive living up in my head’- Janet Marawarr

Janet Marawarr has depicted kunkurra, the spiralling wind associated with several sites in the Kardbam clan. On one level, this design can be interpreted as a depiction of the kinds of mini-cyclones common during the wet season in Arnhem Land, where the artist lives. Kunkurra also relates specifically to a site called Bilwoyinj, near Mankorlod, on the artist’s clan estate.

At this site, two of the most important Kuninjku creation beings, a father and son known as na-korrkko, are believed to have hunted and eaten a goanna. They left some of the goanna fat behind at the site, which turned into the rock that still stands there today.

Bilwoyinj site is also a ceremonial ground for a ceremony called Yabbaduruwa, a major ceremony owned by the Yirridja patrimoiety. The Yabbaduruwa ceremony is primarily concerned with initiation, land ownership and promoting the cyclical regeneration of the human and natural worlds.

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.

In addition to her textile work with Bábbarra Women’s Centre, Marawarr is an accomplished bark painter with Maningrida Arts & Crafts. She also serves her community by working with the Maningrida Night Patrol, a community safety service.

“I saw the old people doing only lino with bush dye, no screen printing. I was 18 then; 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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