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Tjakura Tjukurpa – Lexie’s Story

This Tjukurpa is from Lexie’s grandfather’s homeland called Kunytjanu, located just south of Pipalyatjara near the SA border with WA. It’s a story about tjakura, the great desert skink, a small orange lizard found across the APY Lands. 

 Tjakura has a lot of grandchildren looking after him. One day, a long time ago, he saw too many strangers, an army coming from Mutitjulu. They came and found the tjakura and they killed him. All the kids made a cemetery there for the tjakura. This is a really big story that goes from Kunytjanu to Aralya.

Categories: Ernabella Arts Inc.

Name: Lexie Michael

Language: Pitjantjatjara

Community: Ernabella (Pukatja)

Biography:

Lexie was a batik artist at Ernabella Arts in the 1980s and 90s. Like many artists at that time, her work represented design elements inspired by the desert landscape. 

The batik silks produced at Ernabella Arts include magnificent long silk lengths, paintings, wall hangings and scarves. Today Ernabella batik textiles are held in private collections and public galleries and museums throughout the world.

Lexie has returned to Ernabella Arts recently and started painting with acrylics for the first time. Her deep knowledge of country is evident in her paintings.

In 2020 Lexie exhibited in her first show, Nganampa ngura-nguru nyurampa ngurakutu (From our place to your place) at Aboriginal Signature in Belgium.

Her artwork from that exhibition was then used in a collaboration with Indigenous designer Maara Collective to create a range of resort wear. The range premiered on the catwalk at Australian Fashion Week in July 2021, and was featured on the cover of Marie Claire magazine in the same month.

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