Artiste : Mulkun Wirrpanda (1942-2021)

Titre de l'œuvre : The Ṉämbarra plant

Format : 119 x 59 cm

Provenance et certificat : Yirrkala

Référence de cette peinture : 3074-16

Explications sur cette peinture Aborigène :

This work is an example of a phase where the artist of her own motion explored lesser known plant species which she feared were being forgotten by younger generations. This coincided with artist John Wolseley’s interest in returning to Yilpara (after they had met during the Djalkiri project of 2010) and the two spent an extended period exploring the botany of Blue Mud Bay.

She wants to renew the knowledge of these plants because when she was young this is the food that she grew up on. In those days old people lived for a long time without illness. John Wolseley spent a week at Yilpara with Mulkun in May 2012 and has visited to work together again at Yirrkala in June 2013, June 2014, May and December 2015 and October 2016.

Mulkun has been finding new ways to paint and promote nutritional plants that are no longer eaten widely. As a child there were very many healthy old people and now there are few. She blames poor diet and the loss of knowledge.

This work is a depiction of ṉämbarra the young leaves of Melaleuca are a prized medication for flus and colds as an inhalation as a poultice for sores and as a healthful body wash in solution.

Below is the Yolŋu dictionary entry for Ṉämbarra.

Meaning: tree - edible fruit leaves used medicinally. Paperbark sp., Melaleuca leucadendron. An abbreviation of ṉämbarra is:

barrtjaray, dhulwu', dhowirr, munuymunuy, walḏulu, wolk, wurrtjuḻu.

Language notes: D

Moiety: Dhuwa

Part of speech: n

Her artworks are in the following prestigious collections :

Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney NSW
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide SA
Artbank, Sydney NSW
Berndt Museum, University of Western Australia, Perth WA
British Museum, London, UK
Buku-Larrnggay Mulka - Saltwater - Yirrkala Bark Paintings of Sea Country
Charles Darwin University Art Collection
Holmes a Court Collection
Kerry Stokes Larrakitj Collection, WA
National Maritime Museum, Darling Harbour, Sydney NSW
National Museum of Australia, Canberra ACT
RMIT University Art Collection

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© Photo & text : Aboriginal Signature Estrangin gallery with the courtesy of the artists, & Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Centre