17/03/2023
Happy International Women's Day 🌟
Celebrating the strength, leadership, wisdom and courage of women across the globe. Tjala Arts was built on the strength and ingenuity of women from Amata community, and continues today thanks to the strong governance and clear vision of our incredible women Directors and artists.
This week also marks the opening of .adelaide Kungka Kuṉpu (Strong Women), which resumes its regional touring program at Maitland Regional Art Gallery. The exhibition showcases major contemporary works by celebrated women artists from the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands – cultural custodians of an oral tradition that epitomises the art of storytelling. Working individually and collaboratively, these women leaders share an irrepressible desire to create ground breaking works, deeply embedded with cultural knowledge and rich in ceremonial song and performance.
Kungka Kuṉpu (Strong Women) tells the inspiring tale of women supporting each other across generations, expressed through exemplary paintings, large scale woven sculptural installations and moving image. These works centre on caring for Country, mapping significant sites and life sustaining practices of the desert, while also sharing complex narratives surrounding family obligations and relationships. This includes the Kungkarangkalpa (Seven Sisters) story about women who travel together and look after each other.
Kungka Kunpu (Strong Women) is on exhibition until 21st May
Artwork:
Kunmanara (Wawiriya) Burton, Pitjantjatjara people, Ngayuku Ngura - My Country, 2012, Amata, South Australia, synthetic polymer paint on linen, 195.0 x 195.0
Gift of Lisa Slade and Nici Cumpston 2013, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
