Scott Livesey Galleries - George Tjungurrayi and Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri 2014

SCOTT LIVESEY GALLERIES

ABORIGINAL ART George Tjungurrayi & Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri

SCOTT LIVESEY GALLERIES

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Unkunya, 2012 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1205095 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 122 x 91 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the soakage water site of Unkunya, west of the Kiwirrkura community in Western Australia. The Two Snake Dreaming travelled through this site. This ancestral story forms part of the Tingari Cycle. In ancestral times a large group of Tingari men camped at Unkunya before continuing their travels south-west to Wiluna. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI

(born circa 1958)

Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay), 2012 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number WT1209032 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 107 x 122 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the lake site of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). In ancestral times a large group of Tingari men started from this site and travelled in a large circle, eventually returning to Lake Mackay. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Putulnga, 2010 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1007014 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 122 x 61 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the soakage water site of Putulnga, west of Mamultjulkunga, which is northwest of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). A large group of Tingari men camped at this site digging for the edible tubers known as yala or bush potato from the vine-like shrub Ipomoea costata. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Pukaratjina, 2013 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1311009 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 91 x 61 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the rockhole and soakage water site of Pukaratjina, west of Jupiter Well in Western Australia. In mythological times a large group of Tingari Men camped at this site before continuing their travels east towards Kiwirrkura. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given.

Generally, the Tingari are a group of mythical characters of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari Men were usually followed by Tingari Women and accompanied by novices and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These mythologies form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI

(born circa 1958)

Marawa, 2008 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number WT0802174 Painted at Kiwirrkura Acrylic on Belgian linen 182 x 244 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the swamp site of Marawa, situated slightly west of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). There is also a rockhole and soakage waters at this site. During ancestral times a large group of Tingari men travelled to Marawa from the west, and after arriving at the site, passed beneath the earth’s surface and continued travelling underground. It is also said that a huge ancestral snake sleeps in this swamp. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI

(born circa 1958)

Marawa, 2013 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number WT1307047 Painted at Kiwirrkura Acrylic on Belgian linen 122 x 91 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the swamp site of Marawa, situated slightly west of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). There is also a rockhole and soakage waters at this site. During ancestral times a large group of Tingari men travelled to Marawa from the west, and after arriving at the site, passed beneath the earth’s surface and continued travelling underground. It is also said that a huge ancestral snake sleeps in this swamp. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Kirrimalunya, 2011 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1102088 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 153 x 122 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

The design in this painting depicts the claypan site of Kirrimalunya, north of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). In ancestral times two Ngangkaris (Aboriginal healers) were camped at this site. The two were only young boys but often this healing power is given to Ngangkaris by the time they are young teenagers. This ancestral story forms part of the Tingari Cycle.

Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Kirrimalunya, 2013 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1310065

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Tjulurulnga, 2014 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1402032

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Tjulurulnga, 2014 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1401017

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Mamultjulkulnga, 2014 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1402041 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 61 x 31 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs 16

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WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI

(born circa 1958)

Marawa, 2013 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number WT1303048 Painted at Kiwirrkura Acrylic on Belgian linen 182 x 152 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the swamp site of Marawa, situated slightly west of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). There is also a rockhole and soakage waters at this site. During ancestral times a large group of Tingari men travelled to Marawa from the west, and after arriving at the site, passed beneath the earth’s surface and continued travelling underground. It is also said that a huge ancestral snake sleeps in this swamp. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Kirrimalunya, 2011 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1104034 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 55 x 61 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs The design in this painting relates to the claypan site of Kirrimalunya, north of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). In ancestral times two Ngangkaris (Aboriginal healers) were camped at this site. The two were only young boys but often this healing power is given to Ngangkaris by the time they are young teenagers. This ancestral story forms part of the Tingari Song Cycle. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs. b.

GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Unkunya, 2014 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1402001 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 55 x 61 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs This painting depicts designs associated with the soakage water site of Unkunya, west of the Kiwirrkura community in Western Australia. The Two Snake Dreaming travelled through this site. This ancestral story forms part of the Tingari Cycle. In ancestral times a large group of Tingari men camped at Unkunya before continuing their travels south-west to Wiluna. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Kirrimalunya, 2007 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT0710147 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 183 x 153 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

The design in this painting depicts the claypan site of Kirrimalunya, north of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). In ancestral times two Ngangkaris (Aboriginal healers) were camped at this site. The two were only young boys but often this healing power is given to Ngangkaris by the time they are young teenagers. This ancestral story forms part of the Tingari Cycle.

Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI

(born circa 1958)

Marawa, 2012 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number WT1208014 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 122 x 91 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the swamp site of Marawa, situated slightly west of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay). There is also a rockhole and soakage waters at this site. During ancestral times a large group of Tingari men travelled to Marawa from the west, and after arriving at the site, passed beneath the earth’s surface and continued travelling underground. It is also said that a huge ancestral snake sleeps in this swamp. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Unkunya, 2011 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT1106040 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 122 x 122 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting depicts designs associated with the soakage water site of Unkunya, west of the Kiwirrkura community in Western Australia. The Two Snake Dreaming travelled through this site. This ancestral story forms part of the Tingari Cycle. In ancestral times a large group of Tingari men camped at Unkunya before continuing their travels south-west to Wiluna. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI

(born circa 1943)

Mamultjulkulnga, 2008 Papunya Tula Artists catalogue number GT0812104 Painted at Kintore Acrylic on Belgian linen 153 x 183 cm

Provenance Papunya Tula Artists Pty Ltd, Alice Springs

This painting relates to the claypan site known as Mamultjulkulnga, on the western side of Wilkinkarra (Lake Mackay).

Mamultjulkulnga is of great importance to the artist as his father passed away at this site. After rain this claypan becomes a large shallow freshwater lake, which provides ideal conditions for the prolific growth of the small fleshy sub-shrub Tecticornia verrucosa, known in Pintupi as Mungilypa. In ancestral times two Tingari Men of the Tjungurrayi and Tjapaltjarri kinship subsections camped at this site and gathered mungilypa. The seeds from this plant are ground into a paste which is then cooked in the coals to form a type of unleavened bread. The men also made spears at this site which they threw towards the east and west. The spears flew straight and then turned north and south. Since events associated with the Tingari Cycle are of a secret nature no further detail was given. Generally, the Tingari are a group of ancestral beings of the Dreaming who travelled over vast stretches of the country, performing rituals and creating and shaping particular sites. The Tingari men were usually followed by Tingari women and were accompanied by novices, and their travels and adventures are enshrined in a number of song cycles. These ancestral stories form part of the teachings of the post initiatory youths today as well as providing explanations for contemporary customs.

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WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI In 1984, a Pintupi family of nine, which included Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri, emerged from a traditional nomadic life in remote Western Australia and into the communal fold of Kiwirrkura. Under unimaginable circumstances the family was isolated from outside contact for more than 22 years. Most accounts suggest that they remained in self-exile, waiting for contact from their relatives, who had earlier settled in communities throughout the Western Desert.

News of their arrival momentarily blazed on the front page of newspapers across Australia and around the world. For a country struggling with its identity, it was at once a miracle and an awkward reminder of the indigenous population’s enduring connection to the land. The community of Kiwirrkura closed ranks around the new arrivals, protecting them from increasingly intrusive government officials and journalists; a series of infringements during this time were perceived as a challenge to the social and cultural integrity of the Pintupi. This ultimately invigorated the new struggle to re-establish their autonomy on the land most had vacated two decades previously.

In his role as the senior male of the group, Warlimpirrnga became somewhat of a conduit between the family and outsiders.

As anthropologists Bette Clark and Fred Myers, who were in Kiwirrkura at the request of the community, noted: ‘For his age, the oldest Tjapaltjarri [Warlimpirrnga] is particularly impressive for his authoritative, public role in decisions regarding the family.’¹ He arrived in Kiwirrkura an initiated man, in full command of desert law and ritual. The circumstances of how this came to be are somewhat of a mystery and therefore it was assumed he was in possession of special capabilities.

He and his younger brother, Piyiti Tjapaltjarri, despite their age, were known as powerful maparntjarra (doctor-men)², further elevating him among his desert kin…

In 1987, while manager of Papunya Tula Artists, Daphne Williams was on a routine field trip to Kiwirrkura. Warlimpirrnga approached her, requesting painting materials. Slowly over the coming months he produced a series of modest-sized circle and line depictions of Tingari ancestral stories. These initial paintings were hesitant, the artist obviously grappling with new materials under the keen instruction of relatives. Aware of their importance, as each work was completed, Daphne put it aside. This collection would later form the basis of his first solo exhibition at Gallery Gabrielle Pizzi in 1988, a mere four years after his arrival in Kiwirrkura. Ron and Nellie Castan subsequently generously donated the entire exhibition to the National Gallery of Victoria. Since that time, as his reputation has grown, his work has found particular appeal among collectors around the world lured by first contact art in the form of Oceanic artifacts, including shields, masks and weapons.

Sitting atop a vast ochred expanse of linen, he creates epic, barbed renderings that shimmer and gleam with the potency of the objects from which they are drawn; pearl shells and Kirritjinya (shields), the former known to be the prized possessions of traditional healers, of which Warlimpirrnga is one... an artist of immense capability, emboldened by a new authority and sense of obligation to depict the country of his ancestors.

Throughout his development as an artist, Warlimpirrnga’s work has reflected the influence of some of the innovators of the Papunya Tula movement, including Kanya Tjapangati, Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri, Ronnie Tjampitjinpa and George Tjungurrayi. The paintings, like Warlimpirrnga himself, have changed much with time…

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GEORGE TJUNGURRAYI In isolation, the minimal, seemingly abstract paintings of George Tjungurrayi could originate from anywhere. Removed from their desert home and thrust into the contemporary art paradigm, these highly evolved, sophisticated renderings of line and tone appear perpetually chic and assuredly global. It is perhaps not surprising then that these paintings and their maverick creator sit so awkwardly within the the restrictive expectations of the Aboriginal art movement. So confronting and non-prescribed, so seemingly bereft of an Aboriginal aesethic, these paintings often provoke a rather accusatory question: ‘What is he trying to do?’ The inherent desire of the observer to ‘understand’ Aboriginal art remains a vital part of its appeal. In this instance however, the audience interest lies not only in what they can visually decipher, but the motivations of the artist.

This interest is undoubtedly due, in part, to the enigma surrounding Tjungurrayi. His reputation as a pedantic, difficult eccentric with a broad emotional range, is well known and again provokes comparisons with the great artists of the world.

He is an exacting artist, obsessed with achieving his much revered optical shimmer with technique and colour, formulated not through the science of pigment and light, rather that of atmosphere and intuition. He will work and rework paintings, often camouflaging early tracings with new ideas and undoubtable certainty. However for all his absurd perfectionism and extreme peculiarities, he is a humanist of great proportion who, one way or another, effects all who meet him.

His recent trajectory as an artist should be framed within his emergence from the shadows of a cultural hierarchy of kin and country-men who dominated the cultural landscape of Kintore and Kiwirrkura for many decades. His paintings are in part the product of a local practice which evolved under the influence of late Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri, Turkey Tolson Tjupurrula and Kanya Tjapangati.

The practice of painting for Tjungurrayi is essentially utilitarian. He, like many artists from the desert before him, aims to imbue his art with purpose and effect as a visual manifestation of an ancestral past. He sculpts paint in layered parallel lines to evoke the fluted groves of ceremonial objects or capture the flight of spears thrown through the air. Tightly wound, angular spirals of interlocking keys and mazes abut to reveal new and unforeseen mirage like shapes which float and shimmer above the surface. Other variations of curved and jagged meanders depict the bodies of ancestral snakes that carve a path on their journey through the desert sand. Most significant for the artist however, is the creative process itself. Which is considered as an attendance to and adherence of Pintupi men’s law, an opportunity to meditate upon the layered histories of creation and place.

To be confronted by this singular vision which refuses to deviate or concede, it is a chance to immerse ourselves, to be compelled or repelled and to feel rather than see. There is a sense that Tjungurrayi has us right where he wants us, bewildered and in awe, suspended in a land we will never really know.

Luke Scholes 1. Clark, Bette & Myers, Fred, ‘Report on First Contact Group of Pintupi at Kiwirrkura.’ Report to Joint Working Party of Central Land Council and Department of Aboriginal Affairs, P38.

2. Clark, Bette & Myers, Fred, ‘Report on First Contact Group of Pintupi at Kiwirrkura.’ Report to Joint Working Party of Central Land Council and Department of Aboriginal Affairs, P23.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Papunya Tula Artists Paul Sweeney Ben Danks Rachel Schenberg Jessica Williams Luke Scholes Susie Bowie Eastgate & Jarman Marg Bowman Elizabeth Campbell

SPECIAL THANKS George Tjungurrayi & Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri Catalogue compiled by Scott Livesey & Sophie Foley ISBN 978-0-9806402-8-1 Š Copyright 2014

SCOTT LIVESEY GALLERIES 909a High Street Armadale VIC 3143 Phone: +61 3 9824 7770 www.scottliveseygalleries.com

For artist biographies please refer to www.scottliveseygalleries.com