Warlukurlangu Artists

Desert Fringe-Rush

Valerie Napurrurla Morris 

Desert Fringe-Rush is a native grass with an edible seed. The seeds are traditionally ground on a large stone with a small stone to create flour. This flour is mixed with water to make damper cakes which are cooked in fire coals.

Emu Dreaming

Sabina Nungarrayi Gibson

This painting depicts Emu Dreaming, a Dreamtime story which originates from a place called Ngarlikurlangu north of Yuendumu. The painting tells the story of an emu and a bush turkey who used to be good friends. However, they grew jealous and suspicious of one another, had a huge fight and sadly parted ways forever.

Goanna Dreaming

Melissa Napangardi Williams

This painting depicts a Goanna Dreaming story. The story goes that a Japandardi man named Wamaru travelled south and approached a group of women that were sitting in a circle. He wanted to woo a Nungarrayi woman who was the wrong skin for him. By tribal law their relationship would be taboo. Still he chose to pursue her and they went up the hill at Yarripilangu where they made love. The earth there turned to white ochre and the man turned himself and all of the women into goannas. To this day white ochre can still be found at the top of the hill. The ochre is used for love magic and ceremonial decoration.

Karnta Jukurrpa

Carol Nampijinpa Larry

This painting depicts women hunting for bush foods around the Dreaming sites Yumurrpa and Wapurtali on Warlpiri country. Warlpiri women hunt for a number of different bush foods at different times of the year.

Lappi Lappi

Florance Nungarrayi Tex

This painting depicts Lappi Lappi, a significant rock hole located near Lake Hazett. The rock role has always been important to local people, the Nampijinpa and Nangala peoples as it is a permanent water source surrounded by country rich with bush tucker.

Majardi

Kelly Napanangka Michaels

Majardi is a belt or tassel made of spun hair or fur worn during traditional ceremonies. Human hair or sometimes the fur from wallabies and possums is taken is rolled on the thigh and then spun using a stick spindle. This string is then incorporated into a ‘majardi’ (skirts) or tassels to be worn by women or men during ceremonies. This painting connects with the ancestral women of Mina Mina. As they travelled over their country they wore ‘majardi’ performing dances and ceremonies.

Water Dreaming

Marissa Napanangka Anderson

The site of this painting is Puyurru. Here in the usually dry creek beds are naturally occurring wells. Two Jangala men, rainmakers, sang the rain, unleashing a giant storm. The storm travelled across the country from the east to the west, building as it travelled through many different dreaming sites, spreading water across the country.

Bush Food

Carol Nampijinpa Larry

This painting represents women gathering bush foods on Warlpiri country. They hunt for a number of different bush foods including witchetty grubs, honey ants, bush bananas, bush beans and desert truffle among many others. Traditionally digging sticks were charred and ground on a stone surface to create a bevelled edge. Today Warlpiri women use crowbars to dig for bush foods.

Womens Dreaming

Carol Nampijinpa Larry

This painting shows a women’s Dreaming story from Warlpiri country. In Warlpiri paintings, traditional iconography is used to represent the Dreamtime and other elements. The concentric circles down the centre of the painting are used to represent the bush foods that women have collected, while the straight lines connecting them depict the digging sticks used to collect foods.

Bush Onion Dreaming 

Maggie Napangardi Williams

'Janmarda' (Bush onion) are small bulbs found in the soft soils on the banks of sandy creeks. Digging sticks were used by women to gather the 'Janmarda' and were then cooked over the fire.

Mina Mina

Pauline Napangardi Gallagher

Mina Mina is an extremely important ceremonial site for Napangardi and Napanangka women, located just east of Lake Mackay on the WA border. There are a number of ‘Mulju’ (water soakages) and ‘Maluri’ (clay pans) at Mina Mina.

Yumari Dreaming 

Joy Nagala Brown

The artwork shows a dreaming story from Yumari, a collection of rocks in the Gibson Desert. It is the site of a forbidden love story between a Japaljarri man and a Nangala woman. The painting uses iconography associated with the site and landforms to show the story. For example, the concentric circles represent rockholes.

Brush-Tail Possum

Pamela Napurrurla Walker

'Janganpa' (Brushtail Possum) are nocturnal animals that often nest in the hollows of white gum trees. They were once very common in the country surrounding Yuendumu. In Warlpiri paintings, traditional iconography is used to represent the tracks of the 'Janganpa.' They are often represented in 'E' shaped figures and concentric circles are used to depict the trees in which they live.

Bush Potato

Alicka Napanangka Brown

This story comes from an area east of Yuendumu called Cockatoo Creek. Here the “Yarla” (Bush Potatoes) grow. These edible tubers grow from the roots of the plant, and when cooked they are soft and tasty.

Ngatijirri Nests

Kenneth Jugarrayi Martin 

'Ngatijirri' (Budgerigar) are small, bright green birds native to central Australia which are common around the Yuendumu area, especially after the summer rains. Men would hunt for Ngatijirri nests, robbing them of eggs and juvenile birds, which are both considered delicacies.

Ngalyipi

Pauline Napangardi Gallagher

This painting portrays a specific part of Mina Mina Dreaming, a story about a group of powerful ancestral women. 'Ngalyipi' is a rope-like creeper that climbs up the trunks and limbs of trees. The women during their travels collected this vine. It is used as a ceremonial wrap and a strap to carry coolamons and water carriers. Ngalyipi is also used to tie around the forehead to cure headaches and bind cuts.

Mina Jukurrpa

Pauline Napangardi Gallagher

This painting shows Mina Mina Jukurrpa, a Dreamtime story. The story contains important information about the different roles that men and women play in Warlpiri culture, particularly in the context of ritual performances. It alludes to an earlier time in which their ritual and social roles were reserved. Women were the ones that controlled sacred objects and weapons which are now exclusively owned by men. The sinuous lines represent snakevine, the circles are desert truffle and the wavy lines are similar to the shapes of the hairstring skirts that the women would wear.

Mina Mina Ngalyipi

Kristy Anne Napanangka Martin

'Ngalyipi' is the Warlpiri word for snake vine. It is a rope-like creeper that grows up the trunks and limbs of trees. Within the Mina Mina Dreaming story, ancestral women used digging sticks to collect this special vine.

Yankirri Jukurrpa

Margaret Nangala Gallagher

This painting depicts Yankirri Jukurrpa (Emu Dreaming). The story tells of an emu and a bush turkey who would go about collecting bush raisins to create ‘Kapurdu’ (fruit balls) together. Through Margaret's painting, you can clearly see the large prints of the emu and smaller ones of the bush turkey. Today, at Ngarlikirlangu, you can still see round, red rocks which are the ‘Kapurdu.’ A number of Dreamtime stories are based in the Ngarlikirlangu area.

Pikilyi Jukurrpa

Selina Napanangka Fisher

'Pikilyi' is a large waterhole and natural spring near Mount Doreen station. This painting tells a Dreaming story of two rainbow serpents; ancestral heroes who lived together as man and wife. Women would sit by the two serpents, picking lice off them. For this service, the serpents would allow the women to take water from the springs at Pikilyi.