Philip GUDTHAYKUDTHAY

Long Yam and Two Pythons , c.1970

In this painting on bark, Philip Gudthaykudthay depicts a yam and two snakes.Yam is a staple of the aboriginal diet and, as such, is associated with ceremonies of augmentation. Pythons occupy an important place in Dreamtime mythology, associated...

Elizabeth Kunoth KNGWARREYE

Yam Seeds in my Grandmother’s Country , 2024

Contrary to what we might think, although they were semi-nomadic, the aboriginal peoples were not content to move around in search of food; they planted seeds themselves to facilitate the growth of edible plants. With this painting, Elizabeth Kunoth...

Anthony WHITE

Ghibli , 2019

The title means ‘the hot, dry wind of the Arabian desert’.  Drawing on the long tradition of landscape painting in the region, the artist here depicts a landscape at odds with itself. Rather than a landscape in the picturesque tradition, Anthony...

Linda Syddick NAPALJARRI

My Father is in Heaven , 1996

In this painting, the artist pays tribute to his late father. His totem was the emu, represented four times by the pairs of three-toed legs at the corners of the canvas, perhaps indicating the four points of the compass. The emus are gathered around...

G. W. BOT

Totem of the Garden , 1999

Born in Pakistan to Australian parents, G.W. BOT lived in several countries before settling in Canberra in 1985, where she developed a strong attachment to her homeland. Inspired by the Aborigines, she adopted the wombat as her totem, in reference to...

Paddy Fordham WAINBURRANGA

Dancing Mimih spirit , 2003

Paddy Fordham Wainburranga's paintings celebrate, among other things, the Mimih spirits who appeared in the mythical Dreamtime to give people laws and customs, reveal the secrets of medicine, and teach them art, song, dance and painting. These spirit...