Our penultimate exhibition for 2020 showcases the talents of two emerging female artists from the Kimberley, whose work celebrates the life-giving presence of water to their Country.

Angelina Karadada Boona from Kira Kiro Artists in the remote community of Kalumburu captures the spirituality of wet season rain storms in her enigmatic depictions of the Wandjina spirit found as rock art throughout the region. For the Worrorra , Ngarinyin and Wunumbal peoples, the Wandjina Creator Spirit, often referred to as the Rainmaker, is evidence of their ancestors and symbolic of the powerful wet season storms which bring an abundance of bush foods after the rains. Using a traditional medium of ochre mixed with gum sap, which Karadada’s collects herself, her subtle yet powerful Wandjina spirit emerges from ephemeral clouds surrounded by rain drops.

The artworks of Louise Marlarvie, from Waringarri Aboriginal Arts, are inspired by an ancient desert lake at Paraku (Lake Gregory) in Walmajarri Country, where the Tanami and Great Sandy Deserts meet. Once an inland sea and believed to be fed through the artesian basin linking Paraku with Broome, it is a large body of water surrounded by desert which supports an abundance of bird life and bush foods. There is evidence of habitation dating back more 37,000 years, making it one of the oldest confirmed living areas in Australia. For Marlarvie the waters of Paraku are brought to life through her interpretations of wind over water. Her mark-making suggests a play of light and colour over the surface of the canvas, manifesting the enigmatic, shifting, life-giving waters of Paraku.

View the catalogue HERE

Warmest Nichola

For further enquiries please email nichola@aboriginalcontemporary.com.au

Image: Angelina Karadada Boona