Aboriginal Art in America – Details, episodes & analysis

In 1997, artists from Tjuntjuntjara in the desert of Western Australia, formed the Spinifex Arts Project. Their goal was to create art that would serve as evidence in their legal battle to reclaim their land. Thanks to a generous gift, you can now view many of these pieces in a new exhibition titled "In the Beginning: Paintings by Senior Artists of the Spinifex Arts Project" on display at the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia. In this episode, we learn about the Spinifex Arts Project and the pieces in the exhibition from its curator, Katina Davidson. 

Simon Hogan painting. Photo by Amanda Dent courtesy of Spinifex Arts Project

More information about the exhibition and Kluge Ruhe: https://kluge-ruhe.org/exhibition/in-the-beginning-paintings-by-senior-artists-of-the-spinifex-arts-project/#exhibition

Art and storytelling allow sisters Dora and Jan Griffiths— Aboriginal artists from Western Australia—to maintain an unbroken line of culture from the past and carry it into the future.

Learn more: https://kluge-ruhe.org/

New Series alert!  The next few episodes in your feed will feature the new exhibit “Boomalli Prints and Paper: Making Space as an Art Collective.” In this episode we introduce the collective and the exhibit. Read more and make a free reservation: https://kluge-ruhe.org/exhibition/boomalli-prints-paper-making-space-art-collective

Human figures, stenciled hands, and ancestral beings gather on the surface of this painting in a dynamic circle of ceremonial activity. Thompson Yulidjirri’s _Ngurlmarrk—The Ubarr Ceremony _is a work on paper crafted by the late artist as part of the John W. Kluge Commission of works on paper in 1991-1992 from Injalak Arts & Crafts Association. Yulidjirri's multimedia expertise across rock, bark, and paper is evident here in his depiction of the Ubarr Ceremony, as the patterned background resembles the rock walls of nearby Injalak Hill. Visualizing connections across media and time, Yulidjirri’s painting attests to the role art plays in evoking and transferring stories and knowledge to the next generation of artists and audiences.

Thompson Yulidjirri,  Ngurlmarrk—The Ubarr Ceremony 1990 Natural pigments on paper 150 x 100 cm Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection

When Aboriginal Art started to explode in popularity in the 1980s, galleries, collectors, and museums were most interested in the major works on huge canvases. However, now that the art movement has achieved so much acclaim, collections like the Kluge-Ruhe are focusing more on the earliest works from important art centers like Papunya Tula. Curator Henry Skerritt shares what we learn about contemporary Aboriginal Art by studying the often anonymous works from the early days of Papunya Tula.

https://kluge-ruhe.org/exhibition/irrititja-kuwarri-tjungu-past-present-together-50-years-papunya-tula-artists/

The Kluge-Ruhe works very closely with Aboriginal artists and their descendants in designing their exhibitions. For this exhibit, Curator Henry Skerritt wasn't able to make his usual trip to Australia to meet with artists in person, so they solicited photos, stories, and input on the gallery from artists and descendants virtually. All which they've compiled for the accompanying exhibition catalog.

There aren't many female artists in the exhibit IRRITITJA KUWARRI TJUNGU: 50 YEARS OF PAPUNYA TULA ARTISTS. That's because when Papunya Tula was formed in the 1970s, there weren't many women working at Papunya Tula. Pansy Napangardi was an exception. She was one of the first women artists at Papunya Tula to get a great deal of international acclaim. We talk about her work and foreshadow the massive change that is to come when a new generation of female artists come to Papunya Tula in the 1990s and breathe new life into the art center.

The Kluge-Ruhe is opening a new exhibition! It's called Irrititja Kuwarri Tjungu (Past & Present Together): 50 Years of Papunya Tula Artists.

Papunya Tula is a collective of Aboriginal artists in The Australian Western Desert. In this episode, we get a sneak peak of the new exhibit and Henry Skerritt tells us why these paintings are so important to the history of Aboriginal Art.

And stay tuned! Over the coming weeks, we're going to share a lot more about this very special exhibit and the artworks on display.

Bush Tucker Dreaming, 1988 William Sandy Acrylic on canvas 167.6 x 167.6 cm Gift of John W. Kluge, 1997

Recently, the team at Kluge-Ruhe unrolled a canvas that had been sitting unseen in their collection for a long time. When they finally saw it, it got the team thinking about medium and the creativity that artists unleashed when they started to experiment with painting on canvas. 

Dinny Nolan Tjampitjinpa Men's Ceremony c.1974 Synthetic polymer paints on canvas 65 x 19 in. (165.1 x 48.26 cm) Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia Gift of John W. Kluge, 1997 1991.0021.013

Gabriel Maralngurra is an Aboriginal Australian artist from Gunbalayna in Western Arnhem Land. Gabriel enjoys speaking with others and sharing his own knowledge about painting and Aboriginal traditions so that his culture lives on. He maintains great relations with the curator of the Kluge-Ruhe Art Collection, Henry Skerritt, and virtually joined Skerritt's class in March of 2021 to share his wisdom with students at the University of Virginia. Gabriel Maralngurra Indigenous Australian, b. 1968

Episode produced by Sydney Pulliam.