Latest news with #ArnhemLand
The Guardian
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Yolngu power: how a small Indigenous community in the Top End came to dominate Australian art
It starts with panoramic views of a small town in high-noon heat: a widescreen wrap-around video, cycling slowly from streetscapes to the town's perimeter, with glimpses of the Arafura sea and red dirt vistas. 'Slow down … walk with us,' wall text invites us. Nearby hangs a series of rusty and battered road signs etched with coruscating designs. 'Road closed due to ceremony' reads one; 'You are on the Arnhem Land Aboriginal Land Trust' reads another. This is Yirrkala: a small community in the north-eastern tip of the Top End and a huge presence in contemporary Australian art. Yolŋu artists working with Yirrkala's arts centre have been constant fixtures at the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art awards (Natsiaa) for the last three decades and have been the subject of surveys at the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), NGV, Australian National Maritime Museum and National Museum of Australia, as well as major international touring exhibitions. Now these artists are being celebrated at the Art Gallery of NSW (AGNSW) in the exhibition Yolŋu power: the art of Yirrkala. What makes art from this part of Australia so powerful? Curator Cara Pinchbeck says it's partly the Yolŋu appetite for innovation, combined with the stable leadership of Yirrkala's arts centre, Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka, who is co-curator of the AGNSW exhibition. But mostly, Pinchbeck says, it's down to Yolŋu culture: the numerous song cycles detailing the creation stories of the various clans, and their connected designs – from which all art flows. Underpinning this is gurrutu: an all-encompassing system of connection that maps out each person's relationship to not only other people but every other thing. Even just breezing through Yolŋu Power, you get a sense of the vast richness of this culture and cosmology, across almost 300 works in a kaleidoscope of styles, mediums and subjects – from ochred bark paintings of creation stories and intricately decorated larrakitj (hollow poles) to digital projections, detailed depictions of plant life and minimalist abstractions evoking the Milky Way and the estuaries where fresh and saltwater meet. But if you take the time to really read the wall text and look at the detail of the artwork, an even richer story unfolds. It's the story of a people for whom art is inextricably enmeshed with their understanding of the universe and themselves; a community who, since the 1930s, have used art as a tool of cultural diplomacy with outsiders; and a constellation of individuals who have found ways to maintain millennia-old cultural practices, while boldly innovating for changing times. Past the panoramic video and etched road signs at the exhibition entrance, you pass through a darkened curvilinear chamber hung with a series of Rumbal (body) paintings in ochre on bark, depicting ceremonial designs from the 16 clans around Yirrkala. These designs – or miny'tji – are more than decorative: they express identity, ancestral connections, spiritual beliefs and Country itself. They are sacred and ancient. But these works were painted within the last few years, a statement that the cultural foundations and connections remain strong and vital. These miny'tji are the root of what audiences will see in the next rooms. Sometimes the patterns are in plain sight: the shimmering strings of diamonds in works by artists from Maḏarrpa and Gumatj clans, or the striations of straight and curved lines in works by Marrakulu and Rirratjiŋu artists. Sometimes they're merely hinted at – and even when they're not visible in the artwork, they're essential; the indelible cultural DNA of each maker. Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion Beyond the Rumbal chamber, the exhibition proceeds more or less chronologically, starting with the frontrunners who first painted these body designs on bark, adopting art as a form of cultural diplomacy with balanda/ŋäpaki (non-Yolŋu people). The exhibition closes with an explosion of dazzling innovation, including bark paintings using magenta printer-toner (by Noŋgirrŋa Marawili) and electric blue acrylic (Dhambit Munuŋgurr), and intricately etched sculptures made from mining detritus such as rubber conveyor belts and aluminium signs (by artists including Gunybi Ganambarr). Highlights include detailed and meticulous bark paintings by pioneering artist and activist Narritjin Maymuru, who contributed to the Näku Dhäruk (Yirrkala bark petitions) of 1963, which asserted Yolŋu sovereignty over land leased by the government to mining companies; and shimmering bark paintings by Djambawa Marrawili, including one from the Saltwater series that was successfully used by clans of the Blue Mud Bay area to assert sea rights in the federal court. As the exhibition proceeds, works by women proliferate, the visible shift of senior men permitting their daughters to paint their clans' miny'tji. Other women opted for everyday subjects. An entire room is given over to exquisite secular works on bark, canvas and larrakitj by female artists, including major figures such as Nyapanyapa Yunupiŋu and Gulumbu Yunupiŋu. Plant life is strongly represented, with Malaluba Gumana's mesmerising paintings of dhatam (water lilies) and Djirrirra Wunuŋmurra's delicate depiction of wild yams. Mulkun Wirrpanda's illustrations of flowering vines are animated and projected over a termite-mound sculpture, in a luminous installation at the exhibition's centre. Yolŋu Power is best appreciated with a calm mind and careful attention. For best effect, start in the gallery's cavernous, subterranean Tank, where Buku's digital unit, The Mulka Project, has created an immersive installation evoking Yirrkala's changing seasons. Over 19 minutes, via a soundtrack featuring ancestral songs and field recordings from Country, and a shifting lighting palette, Yalu (Yolŋu for nest, signifying sanctuary) takes viewers through a seasonal cycle in the landscape from which Yirrkala's art flows. Slow down, breathe deeply – and then head upstairs to take a walk with this extraordinary community of artists. Yolŋu power: the art of Yirrkala is at Art Gallery of NSW's Naala Badu building until 6 October.
SBS Australia
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
- SBS Australia
Yolnu power: major exhibition showcases works of Yirrkala Aboriginal artists
Yolnu power: major exhibition showcases works of Yirrkala Aboriginal artists Published 20 June 2025, 8:38 am A major exhibition is showcasing the work of one of Australia's most internationally renowned art communities. Yolnu power: the art of Yirrkala, features 95 Aboriginal artists connected to Yirrkala in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. The exhibition at the Art Gallery of New South Wales aims to showcase the continuation and diversity of the community's artistic practice from the 1940s to today.
The Guardian
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Barunga festival 2025
The small Indigenous community in the Northern Territory welcomed thousands of visitors over the Kings Birthday long weekend for a celebration of Indigenous knowledge and traditions. Festival-goers experienced a showcase of arts and culture from around the Katherine and Arnhem Land regions
ABC News
04-06-2025
- General
- ABC News
Trailblazing Rirratjiŋu clan leader and environmentalist M Marika dies in north-east Arnhem Land
A senior Rirratjiŋu elder who devoted his life to protecting the natural environment and his people has died at 64 years old in north-east Arnhem Land. Note to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers: M Marika's name and image are used here in accordance with the wishes of his family. Guided by his country, culture and family, M Marika stood strong like the lonely rock in the sea off the coast of his Gove peninsula home. He would draw on this metaphor of the rock to fuel what Gumatj clan leader Djawa Yunupiŋu described as Mr Marika's "unwavering love for his people", even in times of great personal loss and hardship. The Rirratjiŋu Aboriginal Corporation (RAC) described Mr Marika as a respected statesman who "dedicated his life to the betterment of his people", expressing condolences to his family and the wider community as they enter sorry business. "He was a cultural authority, community guide and voice of wisdom — deeply trusted across East Arnhem Land," the RAC said. Mr Marika held leadership roles within the RAC, including as chair during what the corporation described as "critical times", and the body said his "humility and quiet strength will be deeply missed". The senior Rirratjiŋu clan elder was known as a humble man and a peacemaker, whose contributions reached across many spheres. Mr Marika was one of four founding land and sea rangers of the Dhimurru Aboriginal Corporation, an organisation he would rise through the ranks to lead over a more than 30-year career. He was also a member of the Yothu Yindi Foundation's Dilak Council, made up of senior cultural leaders from each of the 13 Yolŋu clans. He was recognised with numerous accolades including the NT National Resource Management Lifetime Achievement Award, Nhulunbuy's 2020 Australia Day Citizen Of the Year Award and a recent nomination for the NT's 2025 Local Hero Award. The son of a well-respected land rights figure, Mr Marika was descended from Rirratjiŋu clan royalty. He would go on to brush shoulders with the likes of royalty himself, hosting King Charles III during his visit to north-east Arnhem Land in 2018. Mr Marika was guided by both his Christian faith and his deep foundation in his culture. Mr Yunupiŋu, chairman of the Yothu Yindi Foundation, called Mr Marika a "guardian of land conservation, understanding deeply that caring for country is caring for culture, identity, and spirit". "He was equally devoted to the social wellbeing of his community, working tirelessly to ensure that Yolŋu people had opportunities, support, and a strong sense of belonging and purpose," the Gumatj clan leader said in a statement. Former Dhimurru Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Stephen Roeger said one of Mr Marika's "greatest achievements" was his push to develop a Learning on Country program, linking school curriculum to Yolŋu culture. "There was a lot of concern about what was happening with youth, and concern about what their future prospects were and are," he said. "The Learning on Country program was really about trying to create a pathway and to create that inspiration for future leadership and direction." While Mr Marika had his "own history of struggle and grief", Mr Roeger said he overcame those challenges after making the decision to become a leader. "My gäthu [Yolŋu kinship relation] was there from the very beginning," he said. In recent years, Mr Marika experienced great tragedy, with the early deaths of both his son and grandson. Despite the losses, he remained committed to training his surviving sons for leadership, so they could take up the mantle once he was gone. Mr Marika is mourned by the Rirratjiŋu clan and throughout the broader East Arnhem Land community.
ABC News
30-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
Suspected boat arrivals from China discovered in Arnhem Land
Up to eight people, believed to be from China, have been detained by border protection authorities after reaching a remote part of the Northern Territory coast by boat earlier this week. The ABC has been told the first six members of the group were discovered by local workers on Tuesday while walking near the remote Indigenous township of Maningrida, approximately 500 kilometres east of Darwin in Arnhem Land. Another two men were picked up the following day by Indigenous rangers before eventually being taken into custody by the Australian Border Force, which has so far not commented on the operation. It's unclear where the group has now been taken, but a source familiar with the interception says the men were believed to be Chinese and had reached the Australian mainland by sea before being detected. So far authorities have not discovered any boat used by the suspected Chinese nationals, raising the possibility they were dropped off the Northern Territory coast by an Indonesian fishing vessel. Last year the ABC reported on several suspected people smuggling operations involving Chinese nationals, including a venture which was disrupted by Indonesian authorities 12 months ago. The Australian Border Force and Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke have both declined to answer questions about the arrivals, saying the government does not comment on "operational matters". Newly appointed Shadow Home Affairs Minster Andrew Hastie says if confirmed, the arrival of Chinese nationals was a demonstration of the Albanese government's "underinvestment in our border security and defence capabilities". "We should have unblinking surveillance on our northern approaches, but instead we have illegal boats penetrating our borders and people making it ashore. This signals weakness to the people smugglers that business is back on under Labor," he said.
