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Dhambit Munuŋgurr – Telstra Bark Painting Award

13 January 2022
Culture and Capability Jobs, Land and Economy
A large bark painting over two metres tall. On a white background, two trees with blue leaves and black trunks stand side by side. Amongst the leaves and branches are bees and other insects painted blue. Under the trees are more plants painted in shades o
Dhambit Munuŋgurr, Bees at Gängän 2021 (Courtesy of the Artist and Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka Centre)

Dhambit Munuŋgurr, who won the 2021 Telstra Bark Painting Award, uses her art to carry on sacred teachings from her parents and family.

Dhambit Munuŋgurr is a Yolŋu woman from Gunyuŋara and belongs to a long line of award winning and respected artists and leaders. She is the daughter of Mutitjpuy Munuŋgurr and Gulumbu Yunupiŋu, both winners of the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award (NATSIAA).

 

As a result of a debilitating accident in 2005, Munuŋgurr was given permission to use acrylic paint instead of ochres collected from the natural environment as is customary of Yolŋu artists.

 

Her powerful and spontaneous art is founded in her deep knowledge of Yolŋu Law, however she is also challenging the boundaries of customary practice by experimenting with new styles, subjects and materials.

 

In early 2019 she began to narrow her palette to a striking combination of deep azure blue, black and white which led to her work gaining rapid recognition.

 

Her work is now held in public and private collections, and been exhibited in several prestigious shows and galleries. Her exhibition Can we all have a happy life was a highlight of the National Gallery of Victoria’s Triennial 2020.

 

She was awarded the 2021 Telstra Bark Painting Award for her work Bees at Gängän. In this painting, Dhambit recalls a story told to her by Dr Gawirrin Gumana AO when she was 14. He was the brother of her dad’s mother, Minmin. It is about the bees at Gäṉgän. They are nested in a galanyin (an esoteric name for ironwood). The Dhuwa Ŋätiḻi (black cockatoo) sings from this Dhuwa tree. The adjacent billabong of Garrimala is home to Wititj (Rainbow Serpent). This belongs to the Gälpu clan, her mother’s mother, her märi.

 

Dhambit was also a finalist in the Wynne Prize 2021 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.

Find out more

Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA) is Australia’s longest running and most prestigious art awards for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. Each year the Awards showcase an incredible range of contemporary artworks from across the country.

The 2021 Telstra NATSIAA finalists will be on display at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory in Darwin from 7 August 2021 to 6 February 2022. The works are also available to view in the online gallery.

Read about other 2021 NATSIAA winners Bugai Whyoulter, Ms M Wirrpanda and Timo Hogan.