Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation

Mandjabu

Kuninjku people traditionally make two sorts of conical fish traps. One is called mandjabu and is made from a strong, durable vine called milil, and a smaller one is called manylik mandjabu, and made from the grass manylik. The mandjabuconical fish trap is bigger and stronger and used in tidal reaches of creeks to catch large fish. The smaller, lighter manyliktrap is used in freshwater flowing creeks to catch smaller fish and freshwater prawns. In earlier times, only men were involved in the construction of the large fish traps, but children would often crawl inside and assist.

To make mandjabu, weavers firstly harvest milil (burney vine, Malaisia scandens) and put it in water overnight to make it soft. Then they start weaving it; they make rings for the inside to keep the fish trap’s shape. People also make string from the bark of burdaga (kurrajong) to attach the bardainy (hibiscus) rings and to tie the conical end of the fish trap. It’s hard work and it can take three or four weeks to make a fish trap. People also use fish-net fences called kunkarlewabe. They would put the kunkarlewabe  across rivers and creeks. In the middle they would place the mandjabu. They also used small things like sticks, rocks, mud and grass to block the fish from going through. This way we would catch fish such as saltwater barramundi rajarra, ngaldadmurrng (freshwater barramundi), small black freshwater catfish (buliya), bonefish (an-guwirrpiya), and sand bass (dalakan) in the mandjabu.

Namurre Boko (Two Brothers story)

A two screen print design from 2022. Jay’s first large format design to join the Bábbarra Designs Collection.

We printed this in three colours to give some extra depth to this intricate design.

‘This is my first one, I’m really happy, I’m proud. It’s just a songline for everybody. This story is from my great great grandfather on my fathers side. The songline was made by my second father. The mimihs tell the story. The painting took a long time, a few weeks to finish.’ Jay Jurrupula Rostron

‘Bini-murreko means two brothers – big brother and little brother.

Two brothers were really strong leaders and good hunters, sharing animals with different tribes.
With those different tribe there were jealousy going on.
Little brother went walkabout and heard the different tribe was talking about his tribe.
They said ngarribin manre djed-djedme bokko
Meaning: will make spear for them
Ngarrbin danj-bun, ngarrbinbun
Meaning: will spear them kill them
little brother turn around went back tell his brother
Namurre bokko kadi marne djed-djedme Karre wonens, kardi-djal danjbun
Meaning: they making spear for us, they gonna spear us
Couple of months they saw different tribe
They changed their attitude
They been bringing lots of animals to them and start asking for women
And that tribe realise that’s how those brothers died.
They kill them
This Why? They got jealous because two brothers was a good hunter.

This story written on the rock art and it stays forever.’

Kunkih (Mud Ripples)

This design depicts the patterns of the freshwater mud ripples, which emerge after strong monsoonal wet seasons on the Djinkarr and Nangak flood plains.

These ripples form on the earth’s surface in delicate repetitive and shifting patterns. The mud ripples move, crack, disappear and re-emerge in response to the changing wind, rains and new sun.

The mud ripples depicted in this design are on Elizabeth’s homeland, the Djinkarr and Nangak floodplains south of Maningrida in Arnhem Land.

!00% hand loom tussar silk sourced from India. Soft and Delicate. 

There is some overlap and slight shadowing in part of this print. 

Kunkih (Mud Ripples)

This design depicts the patterns of the freshwater mud ripples, which emerge after strong monsoonal wet seasons on the Djinkarr and Nangak flood plains.

These ripples form on the earth’s surface in delicate repetitive and shifting patterns. The mud ripples move, crack, disappear and re-emerge in response to the changing wind, rains and new sun.

The mud ripples depicted in this design are on Elizabeth’s homeland, the Djinkarr and Nangak floodplains south of Maningrida in Arnhem Land.

Beautiful soft Tussar Silk sourced from India

Gunga (Pandanus)

Gunga (Pandanus)

Bolung and Mimih Dancing

This is an artwork about a dancing Mimih. It’s based on a song line from Korlobidahdah. My fathers eldest brother used to sing this song line and Unkle Dennis he was a dancer. My real father, Jacky was a dancer as well and he was from Korlobidahdah. 

This beautiful design features a number of Jay’s exquisite lino tiles printed in black ink on a pale green cloth. 

Njá-barawarra Na-míbba (Hammerhead shark)

Ndjébbana:

Njá-barawarra na-míbba   hammerhead shark. Sphyrna spp. Gender: djíya; Moiety: Djówanga; Generic (big name): djábbarnbókka ‘sharks’.

Bush Flower

Kunred Kunkurra (Helen Kaminski)

The artist, Janet Marawarr calls this design Kunred Kunkurra in her language, Kuninjku. Kunred means country, kunkurra refers the spiralling wind associated with the mini cyclones that occur around several sites in the Kardbam clan during the build up to the wet season. Marawarr often shares different versions of Kunkurra in her Lino print and Screen Print designs, the story or djang (dreaming) can be heard across the Kardbam clan groups  Eastern Kunwinjku and Kuninjku people  of the Yirridja moiety. This particular artwork describes the underground lightening that occurs during Kunkurra, in the build up to a storm in Mankorlod, Marawarr’s clan estate in West Arnhem Land. 

‘The round shapes in the design mean flashing lightening. The lines beside those shapes are foot tracks,  human foot tracks. When the rain falls it makes mud and underground lightening. When the sky is really red and black, we see the build up to a storm and we call that Kakodjngolbalabalahmen. That means that the clouds are forming.   So that’s the one you see in this artwork.  You can also see the leaves on top of the mud when the rain stops.’ Janet Marawarr 2023