HELEN NAMPIJINPA ROBERTSON | NGAPA JUKURRPA (WATER DREAMING)

This painting depicts the Ngapa Jukurrpa (Water Dreaming) associated with the site of Puyurru, west of Yuendumu. In the usually dry creek beds are water soakages or naturally occurring wells. Two Jangala men, rainmakers, sang the rain, unleashing a giant storm. It travelled across the country, with the lightning striking the land. This storm met up with another storm from Wapurtali, to the west, was picked up by a ‘kirrkarlan’ (brown falcon [Falco berigora]) and carried further west until it dropped the storm at Purlungyanu, where it created a giant soakage. At Puyurru the bird dug up a giant snake, ‘warnayarra’ (the ‘rainbow serpent’) and the snake carried water to create the large lake, Jillyiumpa, close to an outstation in this country. This story belongs to Jangala men and Nangala women. In contemporary Warlpiri paintings traditional iconography is used to represent the Jukurrpa, associated sites and other elements. In many paintings of this Jukurrpa curved and straight lines represent the ‘ngawarra’  (flood waters) running through the landscape. Motifs frequently used to depict this story include small circles representing ‘mulju’ (water soakages) and short bars depicting ‘mangkurdu’  (cumulus & stratocumulus clouds).

Size: 30 x 30 x 2 cm

Shipping : $45.00 in Australia & $65.00 worldwide

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Document:

The artwork is accompanied by the official Aboriginal art centre’s certificate of authenticity. The artist’s complete biography will also be provided when available.

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Origin:

IDAIA is a French-Australian organisation specialised in contemporary Indigenous Australian art, based in Sydney and Paris. Passionate about strengthening the ethical contemporary Indigenous creation sector, we work primarily with the official Aboriginal art centres, that is the 90+ Indigenous-owned, not-for-profit artist cooperatives spread across Australia, and are a proud signatory member of the Indigenous Art Code.