Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation

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Kunwardde dja Karrbarda (Rocks and Yam Vine)

Susan Marawarr is a Kuninjku artist from the Kurulk clan whose country lies around the outstation of Mumeka in central Arnhem Land. In this design, she has depicted karrbarda (long yam) on her traditional country, the kunwardde (stone country).

The large stones represent the kunwardde rocky outcrops, which are elevated above the flat floodplains. The vines creeping around the large rocks are from the karrbarda. Women dig up karrbarda with kungarrndutj (digging sticks) and they are then cooked in the ashes of the fire to be eaten.

These yams are purple on the saltwater side of country and on inland freshwater country they are white. Karrbarda are an important manme (bush food) that are collected during the wet and dry seasons.

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Bah-je (hunting bag) 2007

Linda Gurawana is a Djinang speaker with a long history of working at Babbarra Women’s Centre.

In Linda’s language, bah-je describes a woven hunting bag or dilly bag.

This three-colour design was created in 2007 and continues to be printed by the centre staff in Maningrida. 

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Na-méwaya (triangle fish net)

*Ndjébbana 

A small fishing net or butterfly net of a traditional triangular design. 

 

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Na-méwaya (triangle fish net)

*Ndjébbana 

A small fishing net or butterfly net of a traditional triangular design. 

 

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Stingray – Debbie Pascoe

This is Debbie Pascoe’s first ever screen print design. Printed as a two colour design.

Debbie is from the Djinang language group in Maningrida, which according to the ABS Census has approximately 220 speakers.

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Stingray – Debbie Pascoe

This is Debbie Pascoe’s first ever screen print design. Printed as a two colour design.

Debbie is from the Djinang language group in Maningrida, which according to the ABS Census has approximately 220 speakers.

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Stingray – Debbie Pascoe

This is Debbie Pascoe’s first ever screen print design. Printed as a two colour design.

Debbie is from the Djinang language group in Maningrida, which according to the ABS Census has approximately 220 speakers.

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Djomi (Fresh Water Spirit)

This design depicts the story of the artist’s ancestral dreaming, the Djómi (Fresh Water Spirit).

The Djómi figure is a mermaid-like spirit with fish tail that lives in the freshwater stream that flows out to the sea cliff near Maningrida. Djómi is known to be a very powerful fertility symbol.

“If you go there, you can get pregnant easily. Djómi has babies, and they can give other babies too. The Djómi spirit is so powerful, that women can end up with multiple babies at once, twins or sometimes even more. The Djómi spirits lay eggs near the sacred freshwater stream in Maningrida. Inside the eggs are human babies as well as young Djómi. Men do not go near that swamp, because Djomi is so powerful that men might get pregnant there too. So men are too scared of that Djómi. When we visit the Djómi freshwater spring, we can hear young Djómi  crying. They sound like normal babies crying, those Djómi spirits. They are looking for a mother. This Djómi is my dreaming, I got permission from my djungkay (ritual manager) to paint this Djómi design. For me I always ask my djunguy permission to paint, because that is our cultural way. This design also depicts the freshwater lily leaves and seaweed from the base of the sea floor.” Joy Galrbin

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Barnkabarra (Mud Crabs)

This design tells the story of Elizabeth’s homeland – a dreaming place, a good dreaming place with plenty of Barnkabarra (Mud Crabs). Elizabeth’s homeland lies east of Maningrida, at the mouth of Blyth river. This country is known for a large spiritual mud crab, which lives in the area.

Many families go and collect crabs to eat there with long sticks, or collect directly from the shores. Mud crabs hide in the muddy bottoms of estuaries and mangrove forests in areas surrounding Maningrida. After a king tide, a large cyclical tide which bring the crabs out from the mangroves, it is a good time to find crabs.

Barnkabarra (mud crabs) in Kuninjku language, or Rrugurrgurda (mud crabs) in the Burarra language, are good baladji (bush food in Burarra) and can be caught all year round. They are put on the fire to cook and they are ready when they turn a bright orange colour.

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Kunmadj dja Kunkanin (Dillybag and Digging Stick)

In this design, Jennifer has depicted kun-madj (dillybag), which is a large woven collecting basket. These large bags are often made from the burney vine (Malaisia scandens), a strong, pliable plant that grows along the ground and into the canopy of monsoon vine thickets. The bags are used to collect heavy foods, such as fish caught in conical fish traps or yams. They can also be made from kun-dayarr (Pandanus spiralis), a palm that grows in many areas of Arnhem Land. Tightly woven dillybags are used to collect sugarbag, the native honey.

As well as being of practical use, dillybags are of cultural significance to Arnhem Land people. They are totemic objects associated with particular sites in the landscape.

Organic cotton from Green Tailor, India – sourced sustainably.