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here to read The Age article by Chris Beck
In 2006 Flinders Lane Gallery was proud to present, together for the first
time, the paintings of Minnie Pwerle and younger sisters Molly, Emily and Galya
Pwerle (aged 75 - 90). These senior artists from the Utopia community in the North
Eastern Desert painted an extraordinary body of works that were vibrant, colourful
and energetic, belying their ages. All the sisters have the same Dreaming which
comes from their country Atnwengerrp (pronounced a/noog/it/apa). Minnie
painted all aspects of body painting, representing dance, bushtucker, ceremony
and law. Molly paints ceremonial body paint in bold linear stripes. Emily paints
her dreaming in symbols layered in patterns. Galya paints bushtucker seeds of
the bush tomato and grasses. Minnie
took a close and supportive role in the development of her younger sisters. All
artists, the youngest being in her 70's, have had an instant response to applying
paint onto canvas, developing expressions of the dreamings that have been passed
from generation to generation. Keeping the culture alive through the passing on
of these symbols and patterns ensures the survival of these peoples in the harsh
desert conditions. The
first workshop with the sisters was started in late 2004 by Minnie's eldest daughter
Barbara Weir at the Ultja Outstation. The project has continued on to this date
without any release of the artworks. A major workshop was run every six weeks,
all women continued working between the workshops, totally engaged and delighted
in the experience. During
the workshops all artists Minnie, Molly, Emily and Galya would come together and
work on a collaborative canvas as well as their own individual canvas. Most workshops
were done in the community of Ultja. This created a lot of interest bringing around
lots of family and others in the camp. During these workshops of 2005 many art
interested onlookers where invited to come out and see the development of the
artists. | | | |