Important Aboriginal + Oceanic Art - 14 October 2009 | Melbourne
synthetic polymer paint on linen
183.0 x 244.0 cm
Lot Details
Description
Kathleen Petyarre
synthetic polymer paint on linen
183.0 x 244.0 cm
inscribed verso: Kathleen Petyarre
Commissioned by Gallerie Australis, Adelaide (cat. GAKP0408528)
Private collection, Adelaide
This painting represents an aerial composition of Kathleen Petyarre's sacred Dreaming site of the Mountain Devil Lizard, situated near Mosquito Bore on Utopia Station. It is here that the men and women of the eastern Anmatyerre language conduct important secret and sacred initiation ceremonies.
Representing a sacred women's Dreaming site, the centre of this painting is associated with the green pea (antweth) and the elongated X-shape represents two of the artist's Mountain Ancestors Dreaming paths. Throughout the painting are seeds (ntang) of the pea, which are an important food for the "traditional healer" (ngangkar), and the Mountain Devil Lizard (Arnkerrth).
The white painted areas represent hailstones (Puta Puta) indicating that a big hailstorm has passed over the country. Hailstorms are an unusual occurrence during the summer storms that cross the deserts of central Australia.