Kakan (Black Palm) Basket Weaving This design shows how the bottom part of a black palm basket is woven. My grandmothers and aunties used to make them. They cut off the young palm leaves in the centre, stripped and scrapped them. Then they would put the strips in freshwater to Read more…
Coil Basket Coil basketry is a well-established fibre art form in the Maningrida region, especially for women from the Kuninjku, Rembarrnga, Ndjebbana and Nakkara language groups. Artists make coiled baskets of many shapes and sizes, ranging from small round baskets to large oval baby baskets, and made mostly from pandanus Read more…
Mimih Spirit The mimih spirit exists in a realm that runs parallel to and mirrors many facets of human life, demonstrating the deep sense of time and place understood by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Such spirits feature importantly in relation to Aboriginal spirituality, cosmology, social and moral tales Read more…
Ngalyod (Rainbow Serpent) The rainbow serpent is a powerful ancestral being for Aboriginal people throughout Australia. Characteristics of the rainbow serpent vary greatly from group to group and also depending on the site. Often viewed as a female generative figure, the rainbow serpent can sometimes also be male. She has both Read more…
Kungkarrangkalpa (Seven Sisters) ‘Kungkarrangkalpa’ (The Seven Sisters or Pleaides) is significant Tjukurrpa (dreamtime). Its origins you may be familiar with in astronomy and its connection to ‘Wati Nyiru’ (Magic Man or Orion). The roots of this dreaming stems across indigenous groups around the world. The Australian Aboriginal songline is one Read more…
Bush Onion Flower This fabric was created using the linocut fabric printing technique, which has been refined at Bábbarra Women’s Centre since it was introduced in the mid-1990s. The Lino tile is carved by the artist at Bábbarra Designs. It is printed on fabric by hand using a variety of colours and layers. Read more…
Wayuk ( waterlily) This fabric was created using the linocut fabric printing technique, which has been refined at Bábbarra Women’s Centre since it was introduced in the mid-1990s. The Lino tile is carved by the artist at Bábbarra Designs. It is printed on fabric by hand using a variety of colours and layers. Read more…
Yawkyawk (young woman spirit) Yawkyawk is a word from the Aboriginal Kunwinjku language, meaning ‘young woman’ and ‘young woman spirit being’. Sometimes compared to the European notion of mermaids, yawkyawks are usually depicted with the tails of fish. They have long hair, associated with trailing blooms of algae, typically found Read more…
Bathi (Pandanus Basket) Yolŋu weavers of Arnhem Land create utilitarian, ceremonial, and decorative pieces using naturally sourced materials. This Bathi (Pandanus Basket) is made from young Pandanus spiralis leaves, harvested with a wooden hook, stripped of prickles, and dried to create strong, resilient fibres. These fibres are then twisted, coiled, Read more…
Daisy Kemarre Turner – Irrultja, My Country I was born in Irrultja and I grew up with my mother, father and sister. My mother was the strong painter Rosie Ngwarraye Ross, and my grandmother Biddy Kemarre was a member of the Utopian Batik movement. My sister Margaret Kemarre Ross and Read more…