Anwerlarr angerr (Big yam) (1996) and other works

An Anmatyerre elder and lifelong custodian of women’s ‘dreaming’ sites in her clan country of Alhalkere, Emily Kame Kngwarreye (1910–1996) developed an abstract visual language centred around ancestral spirits and Australian Aboriginal cosmology.

An Anmatyerre elder and lifelong custodian of women’s ‘dreaming’ sites in her clan country of Alhalkere, Emily Kame Kngwarreye (1910–1996) developed an abstract visual language centred around ancestral spirits and Australian Aboriginal cosmology. On display is posthumous selection of her artworks. In each of her abstract compositions, Aboriginal cultural traditions and the natural environment emerge through dominant earth tones and bold, gestural dot work. The canvases thus uniquely echo the linear patterns derived from the designs of Aboriginal ceremonial body paint. Works such as Anwelarr angerr (Big yam) (1996) and My Country (1992) convey a dynamism and colour palette stemming from a deep connection to her tribal homeland, which informed every aspect of her art and life.

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