Kathleen is a Warlpiri speaker who was born at Yuendumu in the Western Desert of Central
Australia circa 1944. However, she and her husband now live at the township of Ti Tree, 190
kilometres North of Alice Springs. As a Napurrula woman (Kathleen’s ‘skin group’) she has an
intimate knowledge of and association with particular dreamings including Bush Potato (Yarla)
and Water (Ngapa). Like most Aboriginal artists from Central Australia, when Kathleen paints,
it is always sitting down cross legged with the canvas flat on the ground. It is in this position
that she often sings or hums a ceremonial song whilst applying the minute dots that will
eventually reveal a composition depicting an aerial perspective of the land to which she is
connected, her ‘country’ near Yuendumu. The surprisingly rapid application of acrylic paint
with a single bamboo skewer is done to the tempo of the song and therefore it is really during
the process of painting where Kathleen is truly expressing her dreaming as opposed to any
real attachment to the finished product. In this sense a lot of Aboriginal art is perfomative as it
has been for countless years historically.
Australia circa 1944. However, she and her husband now live at the township of Ti Tree, 190
kilometres North of Alice Springs. As a Napurrula woman (Kathleen’s ‘skin group’) she has an
intimate knowledge of and association with particular dreamings including Bush Potato (Yarla)
and Water (Ngapa). Like most Aboriginal artists from Central Australia, when Kathleen paints,
it is always sitting down cross legged with the canvas flat on the ground. It is in this position
that she often sings or hums a ceremonial song whilst applying the minute dots that will
eventually reveal a composition depicting an aerial perspective of the land to which she is
connected, her ‘country’ near Yuendumu. The surprisingly rapid application of acrylic paint
with a single bamboo skewer is done to the tempo of the song and therefore it is really during
the process of painting where Kathleen is truly expressing her dreaming as opposed to any
real attachment to the finished product. In this sense a lot of Aboriginal art is perfomative as it
has been for countless years historically.
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