John Mawurndjul

John Mawurndjul (born 1951) is a highly regarded Australian contemporary Indigenous artist. He uses traditional motifs in innovative ways to express spiritual and cultural values, and is especially known for his distinctive and innovative creations based on a traditional cross-hatching style of bark painting techniques.

John Mawurndjul
Born12 December 1951 (1951-12-12) (age 69)
Mumeka, Northern Territory, Australia
Other namesMowundjul, Mawandjul, Mowandjul, Mowundjal, Mawundjurl, Mawurndjurl, Johnny Mawurndjul
Known forBark painting, contemporary Indigenous Australian art
Spouse(s)Kay Lindjuwanga
Children6
Rainbow serpent by John Mawurndjul, 1991. Musée du quai Branly, Paris

Life

Mawurndjul was born on 31 December 1951 in Mumeka, a traditional camping ground for members of the Kurulk clan, on the Mann River, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) south of Maningrida.[1] He is a member of the Kuninjku people of West Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, and grew up with only occasional contact with non-indigenous people and culture.[2]

As of May 2010 he was living a traditional lifestyle at an outstation near Maningrida, still painting and hunting.[2]

Art

He was tutored in rarrk, a traditional painting technique using fine cross-hatching and infill,[3] in the 1970s by his uncle Peter Marralwanga[4] and elder brother Jimmy Njiminjuma[1] and began producing small paintings on bark. During the 1980s he began producing larger and more complex works, and in 1988 won a Rothmans Foundation Award.[5]

During the 1990s his work was included in major exhibitions dealing with Aboriginal Australian art, such as Dreamings in New York (1988), Crossroads in Japan (1992), Aratjara: Art of the first Australians in Germany and the UK (1993–1994), and In the heart of Arnhem Land in France (2001).[1]

In 2000, Mawurndjul's work was amongst that of eight individual and collaborative groups of Indigenous Australian artists shown in the prestigious Nicholas Hall at the Hermitage Museum in Russia. The exhibition received a positive reception from Russian critics, one of whom wrote: "This is an exhibition of contemporary art, not in the sense that it was done recently, but in that it is cased in the mentality, technology and philosophy of radical art of the most recent times. No one, other than the Aborigines of Australia, has succeeded in exhibiting such art at the Hermitage.[5]

Also in 2000, his work was featured at the Sydney Biennale.[1]

His work was subsequently the subject of a major retrospective in Basel, Switzerland (2005) and in the Sprengel Museum in Hanover, Germany (2006). In 2018–2019 an exhibition of his work was shown in the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia and afterwards as part of Tarnanthi 2018 at the Art Gallery of South Australia.[6] This was the first major exhibition of his work in Australia.[7]

Legacy

Mawurndjul has been a major influence on contemporary Kuninjku artists, and he has tutored his wife, Kay Lindjuwanga and daughter Anna Wurrkidj, who are now accomplished painters. He has created a whole school of artists and led an Australian art movement.[1]

Recognition and awards

2003 saw Mawurndjul named by Australian Art Collector magazine as one of the country's 50 most collectible artists.[8] His works have been singled out for praise by many critics, including Art Gallery of New South Wales senior curator Hetti Perkins, and artist Danie Mellor.[3]

Awards

Collections

Mawurndjul is represented in many major public collections, including:[1]

See also

References
  1. "John Mawurndjul". Maningrida Arts & Culture. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  2. Christopher Allen (18 May 2010). "Flowing lines and powerful energy". The Australian. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
  3. Keenan, Catherine (28 August 2010). "An outsider joins the dots". The Sydney Morning Herald Spectrum. pp. 6–7.
  4. Taylor, Luke (2015). "Categories of 'Old' and 'New' in West Arnhem Land Bark Painting". In McGrath, Ann; Jebb, Mary Anne (eds.). Long History, Deep Time: Deepening Histories of Place. Australian National University. p. 112. ISBN 978-1-925-02253-7.
  5. Grishin, Sasha (15 April 2000). "Aboriginal art makes it to the top". Canberra Times.
  6. Museum of Contemporary Art Australia. "John Mawurndjul: I am the old and the new". Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  7. Hullick, Jennifer (4 December 2018). "Sponsorship helps Tarnanthi Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts festival illuminate masters". The Advertiser. Adelaide. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
  8. "50 Most Collectible Artists". Australian Art Collector. 23. January–March 2003. Archived from the original on 9 March 2009. Retrieved 23 June 2009.

Further reading
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