Indigenous Paintings from the Utopia Region - Central Desert
Important Artists from the Region
Contemporary Indigenous Paintings
A Brief Explanation of the Dreaming
|
The region of Utopia is approximately 270 km north east of Alice Springs, NT.
|
|
Within
its boundaries are; Atneltye Boundary Bore, Lyentye Mosquito Bore, Atnarare
Soakage Bore, Arawerre Soapy Bore, Irrweltyr, Ingkwelaye Kurrajong Bore,
Ahalpere Store, Ankerrapwe Utopia Homestead and Artekerre three Bores.
|
|
Indigenous peoples
presence in this country goes back long before recorded history. No
one is certain how old Indigenous people's history is but a
conservative educated guess would make it more than forty thousand
years (or for at least an ice age or two)!
The name Utopia was attached to the region when European immigrants began settling the Northern Territory. The Indigenous groups in the region were utilised by the settlers as housemaids, farm hands and stock hands for little or no pay. The debate amongst scholars and politicians about native title rights for the traditional owners continues though it is more than probably |
accurate to refer to the Indigenous people of the Utopia region as the descendants of the first inhabitants of this continent.
Although to this day a definite divide exists between the descendants of the European immigrants and the Indigenous people, considerable efforts are being made towards reconciliation.
Indigenous groups from Utopia as well as many other regions in the country are able to keep their culture alive through their painting. Recognition for their unequivocally sophisticated culture has come from all corners of the world through contact with the artworks.
|
We highly recommend this excellent series on SBS The First Australians Documentary
Contemporary Indigenous Painting - Utopia
|
Ethnographic records and photographs show that the Indigenous peoples had
a tradition of painting on the body, in the sand, on cave walls and on bark.
Utopia Indigenous painting must be viewed as a contemporary painting
movement rather than an archetypal convention. Whilst contemporary
Indigenous painters draw their inspiration from the Dreamtime stories any
intrinsic secret rites that must not be shown are rarely depicted in paintings
for sale*.
The contemporary Indigenous painting movement in the Utopia region began in the late 1980's. The most sort after artists from this movement are: |
|
Ada
Bird Lindsay Bird Emily Kngwarreye Glory Ngarla Anna Petyarre Gloria Petyarre |
Greeny Petyarre Kathleen Petyarre Nancy Petyarre Minnie Pwerle Barbara Weir |
Some of these artists were involved in making batiks, prior to working with
paint on canvas during the 1980s. Many of the major batiks made during the 1980s were included in a book titled Utopia - A Picture Story by Anne Marie
Broady that catalogued batiks owned by the Robert Holmes a Court collection.
Since the early 1990s demand for paintings from Utopia has increased
solidly. In recent years Utopia region painting exhibitions travelled to
Belgium, England, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan and U.S.A. And
paintings by the foremost exponents from the region are represented in
public collections in most state and regional galleries in Australia.
Important institutions, corporate and public, have substantial collections of paintings from this movement including; AMP, Macquarie Bank, Hitachi, Kelton Foundation, The Vatican Collection, The Holmes a Court Collection, Artbank, ATSIC, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Art Gallery of Queensland, Art Gallery of Western Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, University of Miami and many more!
*Gallery Savah's policy is that we do not offer for sale or show any images that
contain non-sanctioned secret rites that may offend the elders of any
Indigenous community. Furthermore, the Dreamings and Songlines depicted in
the paintings offered for sale are not elaborated on or embellished in any way
other than to state the title offered by the artist and the brief explanation given
by the elders who have allowed the Dreamtime story to be released to the
broader community.
|
Important Artists from the Utopia Region
| The Dreaming Stories are an oral encyclopaedic record of the Indigenous
peoples culture. It is a complete explanation of all matter and life forms.
The stories were created, according to traditional belief a very long time ago
during the Dreamtime. This Dreamtime period is generally regarded as the
creation time by the Dreamtime Spirits. It was during this period
that day, sky, stars, fire, air, water, terrain and all life was created. The Earth was thought of as a flat circular plate like structure and beyond its boundary was the realm of the Dreamtime Spirits and where they go after they die. Thus the custodians of particular Dreamings were entrusted with them in order to keep the harmony between the Dreamtime Spirits and the living. The Dreaming also gives some very practical or necessary information about the land, flora, fauna and human intervention including; medicinally useful plants, edible plants, dangerous regions, locations of subterranean waterways, animal habits, how to hunt, where and when to hunt, where and when to gather, one's tribal relationships and much more. [Return to Top]
Flower Dreaming - Utopia
Utopia has an extreme desert climate. The summer is hot with
temperatures often exceeding forty degrees Celsius. In winter the nights are
freezing cold and frosts occur from June to August.
Long periods of drought in the outback are not uncommon. During the
droughts vegetation is sparse and only spinifex and mulga shrubs subsist
though they appear withered and lifeless. The rest of the flora lays dormant in
anticipation of the cyclic deluge (dry cycles are known to have continued for
up to a decade and longer).
After the infrequent rain the desert landscape is transformed. The
dried out spinifex flower resemble a field of wheat and the
mulga shrub bears green dense foliage and masses of bright yellow flowers.
Growing amongst these plants is an abundance of wildflowers that turns the
deep red coloured desert floor into a utopian garden.
In Wildflower Dreaming the artist pays homage to the spirit of the flowers. The
transformation of the land means new growth and regeneration. Thus the
renewal of the Bush Tucker so necessary for survival.
Yam Dreaming - Utopia
The yam is one of the most stable types of bush tucker gathered in the region
of Utopia.
The yam has a complex root system that can spread up to twelve metres from
its stalk. The plant has bright green leaves with yellow flowers and branches
out over a wide area. It is commonly found in woodland areas and close to a water
source.
It is best harvested several months after rainfall when the exposed plant has
died off. As the edible part is attached to the root system it must be located,
dug up and gathered. Often large areas are excavated to find the yam.
In Yam Dreaming the artist is paying homage to the spirit of the yam plant so
that it regenerates year after year to feed the people.
|
Copyright Notice
__________________________________________________________________________________
HOME | ABOUT THE GALLERY | ARTISTS | ORDER INFO |