Seven Sisters Dreaming

Name: Seven Sisters Dreaming
Brand: Shanna Napanangka Williams
SKU: WA4308/25
Price: 230.00 AUD
Availability: InStock

$230 AUD

Artist:

Shanna Napanangka Williams

Size:

30cm x 30cm

Medium:

Acrylic

Seven Sisters Dreaming is an original acrylic painting by Shanna Napanangka Williams, a Warlpiri artist from Yuendumu in the Northern Territory, who has been painting with Warlukurlangu Artists since 2002.

Measuring 30 × 30 cm, the painting relates to Napaljarri-warnu Jukurrpa (Seven Sisters Dreaming), an important Warlpiri ancestral story associated with the Pleiades star cluster.

The Dreaming follows seven ancestral Napaljarri sisters as they travel across the night sky, pursued by ancestral men. In the story, the sisters eventually transform themselves into fire and ascend to the heavens, becoming the stars of the Pleiades.

Shanna Napanangka Williams comes from a family with a long association with Warlukurlangu Artists. Her great-grandparents, Paddy Sims Japaljarri and Bessie Sims Nakamarra, were founding artists of the art centre. This original painting is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity.

Story from the certificate of authenticity:

The Napaljarri-warnu Jukurrpa (Seven Sisters Dreaming) depicts the story of the seven ancestral Napaljarri sisters who are found in the night sky today in the cluster of seven stars in the constellation Taurus, more commonly known as the Pleiades.

The Pleiades are seven women of the Napaljarri skin group and are often depicted in paintings of this Jukurrpa carrying the Jampiljinpa man 'wardilyka' (the bush turkey [Ardeotis australias]) who is in love with the Napaljarri-warnu and who represents the Orion's Belt cluster of stars, Jukurra-jukurra, the morning star, is a Jakamarra man who is also in love with the seven Napaljarri sisters and is often shown chasing them across the night sky. In a final attempt to escape from the Jakamarra the Napaljarri-warnu turned themselves into fire and ascended to the heavens to become stars.

The custodians of the Napaljarri-warnu Jukurrpa are Japaljarri/Jungarrayi men and Napaljarri/Nungarrayi women. Some parts of the Napaljarri-warnu Jukurrpa are closely associated with men's sacred ceremonies of a very secretive nature. In contemporary Warlpiri paintings traditional iconography is used to represent the Jukurrpa, associated sites and other elements. Often depicted in paintings for this Jukurrpa is the female star Yantarlarangi (Venus - the Evening Star) who chases the seven Napaljarri sisters for having stolen the night from her.

Artists Biography

Shanna Williams Napanangka, born in 1988, is from Yuendumu, 290 km north-west of Alice Springs in Australia's Northern Territory. Shanna Williams Napanangka is the great-granddaughter of Paddy Sims Japaljarri and Bessie Sims Nakamarra, two of the founding artists of the Warlukurlangu Art Centre.

Shanna Williams Napanangka joined the art centre in 2002, at the age of 14. She began painting during the school holidays, when the art centre organised support programmes for schoolchildren. Shanna Williams Napanangka paints her father's stories, dreams that relate directly to her land, its features and the plants and animals that inhabit it. These stories were passed on to her by her father and great-grandfather.

She uses a wide palette of colours, perpetuating traditions that go back thousands of years.

The Sims family is representative of the community roots at the art centre, with four generations participating simultaneously in the centre's activities. Shanna Williams Napanangka is now the mother of two children, Ivan and Diona.

Purchasing your artwork

We have taken great care to ensure that the details, descriptions and prices quoted are correct at the time of publishing.

We have made every effort to render as accurately as possible the colour and design of the products that appear on the website. However, as the actual colours you see will depend on your personal computer equipment, we cannot guarantee that your monitor's display of any colour will accurately reflect the colour of the merchandise on delivery.

Please note that to ensure the safety of your painting, as well as minimizing postage costs, all paintings are dispatched unstretched and rolled. This means that it will require stretching over a frame, prior to being hung. Whilst you can do this yourself, we recommend that a professional framer is used, to ensure that the painting is not damaged.

If this does not suit your requirements, and you wish to purchase a painting pre-stretched, please contact us, nichola@aboriginalcontemporary.com.au to discuss alternative options and prices.

We appreciate that at any price, each painting is an investment and we are happy to answer any questions that you might have.

Certificates of Authenticity

Every artwork comes with a Certificate of Authenticity, issued by the art centre, which includes details of both the artist and the artwork. Different art centres’ certificates look different, however they will all have the following information:

Artist name
Information about the artist, such as language group, place of birth, skin name
Picture of the artwork and in some cases the artist
Title of the artwork
Size of the artwork – make sure it matches the actual artwork
Story – This will vary in length and detail from art centre to art centre and from artist to artist
Catalogue number - this is an important code that links the artwork back to the artist, art centre and the date it was produced

Shipping & Delivery

Dispatch
We aim to process all orders on the next working day after payment has cleared. You will receive an email confirmation with tracking details after dispatch.

Domestic Orders
Most parcels are sent via Australia Post e-parcel, allowing us to track your orders from placement to delivery. Paintings are normally dispatched unstretched and rolled in a postal tube. Please advise if you would like otherwise.

International Orders
Most international orders are shipped with Australia Post’s e-parcel at a flat rate of $44.50. Paintings are normally dispatched unstretched and rolled in a postal tube. Please advise if you would like otherwise. Certain items, such as large or delicate pieces may require a custom solution. If a shipping cost does not appear at checkout, we will contact you with a quotation, prior to the item being dispatched.

Delivery Times
For standard parcels within Australia, please allow 2-5 working days – larger items may take longer. For international parcels, please allow 11-14 working days, depending on the destination. All orders require a signature upon receipt. Unfortunately, we are unable to redirect orders once items have been dispatched.

Damaged Items
Please check your delivery as soon as possible and advise us of any issues.

By appointment viewings

Although we no longer have a bricks-and-mortar gallery, the artworks on this website can be viewed by appointment in Bronte, Sydney. Contact Nichola on 0450929183 or nichola@aboriginalcontemporary.com.au with the pieces you are interested in to arrange a suitable time.

View more by this artist

About Aboriginal Contemporary

Aboriginal Contemporary has an enviable reputation for quality, service and ethical trading; not just with our customers but with the art centres from whom we source our work.

This is in no small part due to owner Nichola Dare’s regular trips to some of the most remote parts of Australia and her ability to build relationships with art centres and artists, based on mutual trust and respect. Nichola’s time in Australia’s Western Desert, The Kimberley, APY Lands and Arnhem Land has also given her a deep understanding of the country and culture at the heart of the art we sell.

Seven Sisters Dreaming

Seven Sisters Dreaming

Recently viewed

Stay Connected