Biography

Horace Wikmunea is part of the Aboriginal community of Aurukun which is located at the northern tip of the state of Queensland, in a tropical region. Its inhabitants are called the Wik and have become famous thanks to the unique style of their wooden animal sculptures, covered with natural pigments.

The works that were collected at the beginning of the 20th century had a ritual character and were not intended for sale: they were left to disintegrate in the open air after ceremonies. Until the beginning of the 1980s, elders told women and children that the sculptures were not made by human hands but were real totemic beings.

It was at the same period that works were offered on the art market but they were not painted in order to remove their sacred powers which were deemed very dangerous for the uninitiated. Little by little the Wiks agreed to deliver painted works, first by donating them to the South Australian Museum which showed them in exhibitions in Australia, but also in the United States and Japan. The keen interest that Aurukun's works aroused among the public and critics encouraged the Wiks to produce works for the market in order to have their culture recognized and support their needs.