Shire of East Pilbara (Martumili Artists)

Mangala Country “My father’s Country. This is the four soaks in his Country.” – Emily Bumba

Untitled “When Martu paint, it’s like a map. Martu draw story on the ground and on the canvas, and all the circle and line there are the hunting areas and different waters and tracks where people used to walk, and [some you] can’t cross, like boundaries. So nowadays you see Read more…

Tali, Tuwa (Sandhills) The traditional lands of the Martu people encompass the Great Sandy Desert and Rudall River regions of Western Australia, an enormous tract dominated by distinctive red tali, or tuwa (sandhills). These sandhills present an unforgiving landscape; sparse vegetation covers a seemingly never ending expanse of dunes, and Read more…

Untitled “When Martu paint, it’s like a map. Martu draw story on the ground and on the canvas, and all the circle and line there are the hunting areas and different waters and tracks where people used to walk, and [some you] can’t cross, like boundaries. So nowadays you see Read more…

Julapanja, Wirrkuja “This Jilapunga rockhole. Kayili (east) from Yungara. Always kapi (water) there, pujiman (traditional, desert-dwelling Martu) would drink from there. All bush-tucker there, womula (bush tomato), and minyarra (bush-onion). Barli [the artist’s daughter] was little one walking around that place. Pujiman time.  This one rockhole, Julapanja, that’s a claypan, Wirrkuja. Water Read more…

Wantili, Canning Stock Route Area “This is Wantili, this is my Country, Amy’s Country, everybody’s Country. . It’s the hill and all the kapi (water). This one big Country, big area, pubajba (hills) claypan- big one. Water been running, rolling, rolling from these hill here. Trees and spinifex all the Read more…

Tayiku “Tayiku [is a] yinta (permanent water source), big one. In the desert, long way, Kakarra (East). I been walking round there when I was a big girl, after I been married. My daughter, Barley Bumba, he [she] been born there.  Jila (snake) he been go in that hole, long Read more…

Kulyakartu; Make a hole there, sing him, water come Country, ngayu mili (my) country. Old people mili country; Martu, Nyangumarta, Warnman, Nyanatjarra people. That’s the area I been born now. Big area, juri (good) country. Plenty warta (shrubs, trees) there, plenty kapi (water). One windmill there too. No tuwa (sandhill) Read more…

Kulijatukujarra This work depicts a waterhole within the artists’ ngurra (home Country, camp), typically represented with circular forms. Waterholes are sites that require maintenance, including digging to increase flow, clearing out surrounding growth, and cleaning up after sullying by camels or cattle. During the pujiman (traditional, desert dwelling) period, knowledge Read more…

Untitled “This is my country, my little brother was born here in Pujiman times, I was a big girl no man yet. we were walking a long way, in the painting you can see the tali (sand hills) and the burning country.” – Nancy Nyanjilpayi Chapman