ABORIGINAL DESERT ART  GALLERY

ELIZABETH KNGWARREYE

Elizabeth is a traditional Aboriginal woman and as such is responsible for aspects of painting ceremonies.

BORN CA: 1961
GROUP: ANMATJERRE
AREA: UTOPIA

She was born at Utopia in the Northern Territory (approximately 250 KM north east from Alice Springs) and has been involved in the painting movement at Utopia since its beginning, being around 1986. Elizabeth is an Eastern Anmatyerre speaker whose traditional country lies on the western side of the Sandover River, Utopia Station. Her traditional land stretches west onto Mt Skinner Station.

Elizabeth is married to the traditional artist, Cowboy Louie Perle. He gained his reputation as a stockman and dressed in a loud and showy manner. Thus the name "Cowboy" stuck with him. Cowboy resides at Mosquito Bore, travelling to Boundary Bore on the western extremities of Utopia. He is married in the traditional way to Elizabeth and Carol Kngwarreye.

One definitive highlight and specialty of her present work rests in her ability to contour and form her dreaming paintings attuning this to her symbolism and ceremony. Moreover, Elizabeth has the innate capacity to meld together the earthy and timeless perceptions associated with her culture. This interaction is seen and felt through the rigorous high quality standard of work she sets for herself. The end result to this mastery is a transmutation of visual feeling onto her paintings.

Her work, along with her husband’s work has been exhibited across the Eastern and Southern States of Australia. She is an artist in high demand. Her work is constantly sought after by private collectors from around the world.

Elizabeth Kngwarreye and her husband have been painting for Michael Hollow Aboriginal Desert Art Gallery, in Alice Springs - Melbourne and Sydney since 1993.

WOMEN'S DREAMING ( CEREMONY )

Aboriginal paintings are based on myths of the Dreamtime. In modern dot representation, the sacred aspect of the painting is not always revealed, but the meaning remains, transmitted through symbols which are easily understood.

Each person has particular Dreaming to which they belong and they have special ceremonial dances and songs that combine together to form a unique religion that makes up the lives of the Aboriginal people. All things related to the land and thus the land is of great importance to them

. The land is the keeper of the Dreaming and must be kept safe for all time so that the Dreaming stories, which are told in the paintings, can be preserved. While many ceremonies are open or public, many are secret to varying degrees.

The categories of people who can be present are restricted; groups such as women, girls and uninitiated men and strangers would all have limitations placed on them in relation to men’s ceremonies; men, boys and uninitiated girls would have similar restrictions placed on them in relation to women's ceremonies.

This painting tells of women's business, an initiation ceremony for women.

The women depicted here (by stylised horseshoe motif) may be past initiates, or young women awaiting instruction from older women. Initiates are taught their roles as nurturers of the land and keepers of the law by which life's rules and regulations are set.

The concentric circles represent secret ceremonial sites near Utopia.

Ceremonies always involve song, dance and body decoration, The ownership, management and performance is dependent upon knowledge and status. Bodypainting carries deep spiritual significance for the Aboriginal people.

They recognise the creative nature of this activity, which uses the human body itself as a living canvas for artistic expression. The use of particular designs and motifs denotes social position and the relationship of the individuals to their family group and to particular ancestors, totemic animals and tracts of land. In many situations individuals are completely transformed so they ‘become’ the spirit ancestor they are portraying in the dance.

Patterns must conform to the ceremony being performed, and the women are not at liberty to adorn themselves with designs of free will. Elaborate ground constructions (sand paintings) are also made. Usually during ceremonies, their bodypainting depicts similar linear designs as those illustrated in the ground paintings.

The women are shown sitting along the ceremonial line shown in the middle of the painting , painting their bodies with markings in preparation for the ceremony. Ochres and Spinifex ashes are mixed with Kangaroo or Emu fat to make the body paint. Bodypainting ranges from simply smearing clay across the face, to intrinsic full body patterning.

Owing however to the secret and sacred nature of the ceremonies involved no further interpretation is possible.