Sturt Pea
The Sturt Pea has a vibrant red flower. It has a succulent sweet juice that can be eaten.
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Thama and Jinda
Thama (fire) and jinda (charcoal): When you get the marruwa (snakewood) and make fire, you see it burning, burning, burning. After the fire burns the wood becomes black, jinda (charcoal). And then the ash comes. Marruwa is the best stick to burn because it burns so hot.This is fire burning with ashes after.
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Gunga wungili (pandanus picture)
At the end of May 2024, Bula’bula artists, along with Milingimbi Arts and Culture, Maningrida Arts, and Gapuwiak Arts, were invited to attend the Langarra Bush Gallery—a three-day camp that included an exhibition, workshops, and discussions for the Weavers of Arnhem Land. Langarra is an island located a 20-minute boat ride from Elcho Island in the Arafura Sea.
The Bush Gallery provided weavers with an opportunity to create work that pushed their boundaries, encouraging them to experiment with new techniques or showcase unique skills. The goal was to foster a supportive environment where weavers could create and present work they were excited about, facilitate discussions, connections, growth, and instilling pride in their craft.
As a result of this project, our weavers produced traditional Yolngu items from hand-spun bush string, including bags, hunting and fishing items, and wearable ceremonial pieces. Additionally, they explored new approaches by creating canvas-shaped formats. This format invite viewers to examine the intricate details, colours, and craftsmanship, highlighting the inherent beauty of the gunga.
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Woven Mat
Traditionally, Nganiyal (conical mats) were used as an insect screen when erected, and as a sitting mat when folded. They are used in Ceremony as well as a functional item.
Nowadays, artists weave many different shapes including flat, round and oblong.
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Sunrise Earrings Woven
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My Design
In her recent series of black and white works, Melissa is interested in exploring painting using only two colours on a textured surface. She says: “it’s a nice change from my big coloured paintings. I spend a lot of time thinking about the painting so I can get it right from the start. I like to start with a clear idea of what I want to do. If I don’t get it right, I won’t touch it until I know where I want it to go, and that might take days of looking and thinking. I have to have the vision of the painting clearly in my mind. When the experiment has gone right, I love it. Knowing that the buyer will love it and cherish it makes it worthwhile; to make someone else happy.
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The Two Lore Breakers
In Yindjibarndi Country there were two men that have been initiated through the Lore. They walked around the Country til they found a pretty bird – the 28 parrot – killed and ate it because it was a secret bird. Then a big wind came. It was a rainbow serpent coming for them in a vicious way, cutting through the land, creating rivers and pools along the way. As soon as the serpant for them, they were swallowed through his anus and brought back out as two cockatoos…!
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Coral Reef
When the tide goes out it leaves all the weeds among the rockholes mixed with all the colourful coral from the ocean.
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Grey Emu feathers with Peach Raffia
