The Wandjina spirits are highly respected by the Worrora, Ngarinyin and Wunumbul people who live at Mowanjum and along the Gibb River Road to Kalumburru in the North West Kimberley region of Western Australia. Wandjina represents the laws of everything the surrounds us trees, rivers, rocks, bush fruit and animals, all creation. The Wandjinas give the law on how we have to treat and use these creations. These customs are carried on today.
Anterrengeny is my Fathers country. I paint the country that come from, the beautiful landscapes and the many colours as they change during the season.
Anterrengeny is my Father’s country. I paint the country that come from, the beautiful landscapes and the many colours as they change during the session.
The artists of Ampilatwatja made a conscious decision not to paint ‘altyerr’ dreaming stories. The artists paint their country where those stories sit.
These bush flowers grow seasonly in Alyawarr country, some of which are also used in bush medicine remedies.
“When I go out hunting, I like to see all the bush flowers that are flowering and then when I come back, I paint them.”
Fibre Art is an ancient Aboriginal women’s craft that is still made today using the same techniques as their ancestors. Making fibre art is labour intensive and much care and fine needlework is required to ensure the finished object is both functional and beautiful. Fibre art from Ghunmarn Culture Centre includes dilly bags, floor mats, bush fans, woven creatures found in the landscape, plants such as yams (bush potato), baskets, place mats, and spirit figures such as mermaids and Mukuys. Natural pandanus fibre (Mukarra), is used to make much of the fibre art produced by the artists of Djilpin Arts. Women collect the pandanus by pulling from the top of the pandanus tree, then stripping and drying the leaves before they are dyed with natural bush colour collected from the Beswick surrounds.
The Coral Reef is beautiful and pure, however no one truely knows how far it goes. As we look from above, we would often find ourselves pondering about the depth and size of the reef, seeing multiple types of coral overlapping or sometimes even spliced together, layer after layer going further down into the road of curiosity.
Art Centre notes:
Image size: 63 x 45cm
Paper size: 76 x 57cm
The artwork is a painting, Materials : acrylic, pastel, and pen on BFK Rives paper
(100% cotton rag with strong archival properties).
Artist: Nathan Dowling
This is Malpiya’s mother’s country near Kanpi on the APY Lands. Malpiya’s mother was born here at one of the waterholes. The kalaya (emu) is the creation being that formed this land. Malpiya’s design is a depiction of the kalaya walking around looking for mai (food) and water in the rockholes.
Night time. They travellin’ to see family. Goanna walkin’, alien Standing in light stopping car, spaceship crash, another one takin’ kangaroo.
Djilpin Arts is a not for profit Aboriginal Corporation that promotes the maintenance, development and transmission of traditional cultural knowledge systems.
Djilpin Arts specialises in art, live cultural performance, digital media, and produced the popular performance event – the Walking With Spirits Festival as well as Concerts on Country.
Djilpin Arts operates the Ghunmarn Culture Centre – home of the Blanasi Collection and offers fine arts & crafts for sale. Djilpin Arts operates an outlet in Katherine – Shed 5, where all works are sourced from Ghunmarn Culture Centre. Ghunmarn Culture Centre is in the Wugularr (Beswick) community of South East Arnhem Land.
All artworks are made by local artists living in the community. Artwork reflects the traditional songs and stories that have been passed down through the generations with a contemporary edge. Fibre art is a special feature of Djilpin Arts as is its Gapu Series of fine art prints.
Wood carving has always been part of Aboriginal culture and Djilpin artists continue this tradition. Men carved wood for many purposes – tools for hunting or gathering food, axes and knives for building shelters, spears and clubs for protection of their lives and territory, objects for ceremony and to mark sacred sites.
Hunting implements include the boomerang, woomera and spear. The woomera is a lever which helps to increase the speed and distance the spear travels. Clapsticks are used as percussion instruments by the Songmen to accompany dancing along with the didgeridoo (mago).
As well as the more functional carvings, artists portray animals and birds in wood, and these carvings are often painted. Ceremonial carvings include spirit creatures including mukuy (devil devils) and mimi.
Some fine mimi figures have been cast in bronze.