Example ceramics from the Hermannsburg Potters
Hermannsburg Potters: Ntaria (Hermannsburg), NT
Judith Pungarta Inkamala, born 1947, grew up at the Hermannsburg mission. She put it plainly: "I grew up during imanka (mission days) watching Albert Namatjira and his kin painting on Country. After the mission finished we women started making pottery." The mission land was returned to the Arrarnta owners in 1982. In 1990, Pastor Nahasson Ungwanaka — who had been working with clay since the 1960s — invited ceramicist Naomi Sharp to teach the hand-coil technique at the outstations and homelands surrounding Ntaria. His wife Rahel Ungwanaka Kngwarria was among the first students. The first exhibition was held in Alice Springs in August 1991. Sharp's planned three-week visit became sixteen years; she retired in March 2006.
In 1992, ATSIC enterprise development funding enabled the group to incorporate and acquire a building at Ntaria School, where they still operate. Hermannsburg Potters is a women-only collective of Western Arrarnta artists. The distinctive work centres on hand-coiled terracotta pots painted with ceramic underglazes depicting Western Arrarnta country, wildlife, flora, community life, and family histories, often topped with sculpted figurative lids. The practice has expanded to include mosaics, ceramic relief murals, acrylic landscape paintings, sgraffito, and slab-built sculpture. Elaine Namatjira, granddaughter of Albert Namatjira, was one of the leading artists; her work influenced her nephew Vincent Namatjira. The centre has held over 130 exhibitions across its history, with works held in national and international collections. Ntaria is 130 kilometres west of Alice Springs in the foothills of the Western MacDonnell Ranges.
Hermannsburg Potters at a glance
- Location: Kaltajarrinja Street, Ntaria (Hermannsburg) NT. 130km west of Alice Springs.
- Established: 1990. Incorporated 1992. Women-only collective.
- People: Western Arrarnta people of Ntaria.
- Art forms: Hand-coiled terracotta pottery with underglaze painting and sculptural lids; mosaics; ceramic murals; acrylic landscape painting; sgraffito; slab-built sculpture.
- Notable artists: Judith Pungarta Inkamala, Elaine Namatjira, Rahel Ungwanaka Kngwarria, Rona Rubuntja.
Hermannsburg Potters website
