ARTS BACKBONE Volume 5 Issue 2: June 2005 Gulumbu Yunupingu GAN’YU (detail) ochre pigments on stringybark, 2005 © Buku-Larrnggay Mulka & the artist INSIDE • Yananymul Mununggurr • Milingimbi Art & Craft Centre Re-Opens • Glenys Newry from Waringarri Arts • Musée du quai Branly 2006 • “Yakumirri” • Bula’bula Arts Archive • Warlayirti Artists’ Glass Workshop • OZeCulture Conference • Who’s Who & What’s New • Events & Exhibitions Calendar www.aboriginalart.org Message from the ANKAAA Chairperson Terry (Djambawa) Marawili Today ANKAAA is formally standing government that working together solid with six staff and 12 Yolngu makes the job easier. GPO BOX 2152 DARWIN (Indigenous) Executive. This We are spending the funding NORTHERN TERRITORY Yolngu and Balanda are working (VACS funding from Arts NT and together and sharing together, AUSTRALIA 0801 DCITA through Australia Council) this is the way it should be to wisely on training and support for make ANKAAA and all its members artists in their Art Centres where and the Indigenous art industry Frog Hollow Centre for the Arts 56 the arts and skills are needed. This strong, to keep moving forward. McMinn Street Darwin Northern training is helping their Art centres This way we are both learning and Territory Australia get stronger. sharing Yolngu and Balanda ways Phone +61 (0) 8 8981 6134 and showing government and non Fax +61 (0) 8 8981 6048 email [email protected] Message from the ANKAAA Manager www.ankaaa.org.au Stephanie Hawkins www.aboriginalart.org Welcome to the 2nd issue of the Centres including the recruitment Arts Backbone for 2005. We have of a Business Development Offcer and a new look newsletter and with the assistance of DEWR. Also All text & images are copyight the artists hope you like it! Issue 1 introduced in the fnal negotiation stage is & Art Centres or ANKAAA (as indicated) ANKAAA’s new staff structure the Tripartite agreement between unless otherwise stated. with the addition of two Regional ANKAAA, Arts NT and the Australia ANKAAA Arts Backbone is © ANKAAA 2005 Industry Development Offcers Council for three year Visual Arts in Katherine and Kununurra and and Crafts Strategy funding and a new Darwin based Industry the NT Indigenous Building Strong ANKAAA is a non-profit incorporated Development Offcer. We have been Arts Business funding. Art Centres Aboriginal Association developing some exciting projects across the ANKAAA regions have which will be coming to fruition been participating in workshops, in the next quarter including an exhibitions and increasing sales ANKAAA is proudly supported by: International Export Strategy with through the their online galleries the assistance of NT DBIRD, Arts and are preparing for a busy dry NT, Austrade and DESART which season with a schedule of events will result in a export focused including the NATSIAA awards, trip by dealers and galleries GARMA and the KALACC Festival from Germany. We are currently all in August 2005. fnalising a two year Business Development Project for Art Glenys Newry Art Gallery Assistant, Waringarri Arts I have been working at Waringarri Arts since Easter 2005, but I used to work here about 3 years ago also. I look after the gallery and make sure it is always tidy and the paintings are well displayed. I also © Waringarri Arts Waringarri © do a lot of customer service such as selling work and explaining the art to tourists. I also take people on tours of the gallery to educate people about the art and culture at Waringarri. Although I don’t paint myself, I enjoy listening to the old people and the stories they tell about the paintings. I am Mirrawoong, but my father is Ngariman. Most of the artists at Waringarri are Mirrawoong and they paint this country. Milingimbi Art & Craft Centre Re-Opens Story by Rachelle Burke, Manager © Milingimbi Art & Craft © Milingimbi Art & Craft Milingimbi Art & Craft Centre is Assistant & Elvira Manybunu Admin artists Enrika Marmar, 15 and experiencing very exciting times. Assistant. Jacinta Burukumalawuy aged With the re-activation of the art 17. These are two sisters who I have spent a lot of time with the centre after over 2 years of non- are producing some wonderful new staff talking, listening, and operation. art works on paper. Their style watching. We were all exploring is bright and has a youthfulness The Art Centre re-opened on the what position would be suitable. about it. I feel strongly that these 7th of March 2005. Looking back After one month the staff members are two young women to keep on that frst day, it’s incredible to have narrowed it down as to which an eye on. Also three young men see where we are now after such area they feel they are best suited by the names of Paul Wurrutjpu, a short period of time. Accounts to. All staff members have put in Jonathan Roy and David Roy. have been opened, artist materials a tremendous effort and are very These young men are producing in shop, staff on board, paintings, excited to have an outlet for their high quality works on paper, woven pandanus works, artefacts, artwork and to be represented in a canvas and bark. carvings, yidaki and necklaces professional manner. are all on display in the open Many people have commented We are planning workshops for plan gallery, which exists within that since the opening of the staff and artists, the frst of which a charming mud brick building MACC something wonderful has will be printmaking. situated right on the beach! happened, it’s brought a real buzz After many conversations with into the community. The Milingimbi Art & Craft Centre staff and artists we have planned now has a full staff. Joey Djakala Phone 08 8987 9888 our frst exhibition to open April Trainee Manager, Alfred Walpay 2006 in Melbourne. Email [email protected] Field Offcer, Jonathan Roy Packer and Bush Trip Coordinator I would like to take this opportunity Paul Wurrutjpu Packer & Gallery to mention a couple of emerging Yananymul Mununggurr Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Art Centre Winner of Best Bark at the 1995 Her work is in museums in National Telstra Aboriginal & Torres Queensland, Victoria, Western Strait Islander Art Awards. Her Australia and the Northern father Mutitjpuy Mununggurr was Territory. the overall frst prize winner in Yananymul’s work will feature 1990. Her second mother Gulumbu in ‘Yakumirri’ opening at Raft Yunupingu won frst prize in 2004. Artspace, Darwin 15th July. Yananymul is one of Yirrkala’s © Buku-Larrnggay Mulka most popular print artists. She has nine children with husband Yalpi Yunupingu who exhibited in last year’s Sculpture by the Sea. This landmark commission is being curated by Brenda L. Croft (Senior Curator, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art, National Gallery of Australia) and Hetti Perkins (Curator, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts, Art Gallery of New South Wales) & will be a permanent, site-specifc public artwork exhibiting eight major Indigenous Australian artists. The artists are Lena Nyadbi (WA), Paddy Nyunkuny Bedford (WA), Judy Watson (Qld), Gulumbu Yunupingu (NT), John Mawurndjul (NT), Tommy Watson (WA), Ningura Napurrula (NT) and Michael Riley (NSW). © Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Mulka Buku-Larrnggay © The works will be part of the Left to right: Brenda Croft, Hetti Perkins, Gulumbu Yunupingu architectural fabric of the building. The artists’ work will combine original Gulumbu Yunupingu is elder sister to Galarrwuy and work and high quality reproductions Mandawuy, healer and sage of North East Arnhem, translator of original work for the ground, frst, of the Bible into Gumatj over 26 years, winner of the 2004 second, third and fourth foor ceilings Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award. and façade of the rue de l’Université The design on the three memorial poles which won that prize Building, one of the museum’s four was based on stories of the stars from her father Munggurrawuy buildings. The museum is dedicated (1905-79). When she looks at the stars, Gulumbu thinks about to the art and civilisations of Africa, the universe, all around, and about every tribe, every colour. Asia, Oceania and the Americas. Its In every corner of the world people can look up and see the collection includes more than 3,500 stars. This is Gulumbu’s vision. In her art, she focuses on the artefacts and masterpieces from link between all people everywhere. Gulumbu stressed that the Musée de l’Homme (Museum of “We look UP to the stars, trees grow UP, people sit or Mankind) and the former Musée des stand UP, the poles stand UP. What do we grow up to? Arts d’Afrique et d’Océanie (African (looking up)...the stars!” and Oceanic Art Museum). The life force (growth) inevitably matures into eternity (death) ‘It’s extremely signifcant that as a natural stage of growth. She also says that the larger stars she represents are those visible to our naked eye but the dots Indigenous work from Australia was are those that we cannot see which are there as well. This is selected by the museum to realise the what a being with an infnite view would see in the night sky highly artistic vision of internationally nothing but stars. renowned architect Jean Nouvel for this landmark building. From a When Hettie and Brenda came to Yirrkala they went bush with curatorial perspective it’s extremely Gulumbu and found a nest of three baby Red Wing Parrots right at the base of a hollowed trunk that she chopped down. They satisfying being part of such a are still alive and doing well. large-scale, highly collaborative venture drawing on traditional and Will Stubbs, Manager, Buku-Larrnggay Mulka contemporary urban practice,’ said Ms Perkins.