Yarrenyty Arltere Artists: Larapinta Valley Town Camp, Alice Springs, NT
The soft sculptures Yarrenyty Arltere Artists are known for begin as recycled woollen blankets, dyed using local plants, tea, and corroded metal. The dyed blankets are then cut, stitched, embroidered with brightly coloured wool thread, and embellished with feathers. Each figure carries the maker's personality directly in the work. Trudy Inkamala, born 1940, is the centre's venerated matriarch. She started sewing in 2014 after her husband died: "I went to art centre to work there, sit down and talk, happy way." Her first exhibit at Desert Mob was acquired by the Araluen Arts Centre. Marlene Rubuntja, whose father Wenten Rubuntja was one of the original families to settle Yarrenyty Arltere Town Camp in the 1970s, began making soft sculptures in 2009 and has written the scripts for all the centre's animated films.
Yarrenyty Arltere Town Camp is one of the oldest town camps on Arrernte country in Mparntwe (Alice Springs). The art centre was initiated in 2000 as a training project within the Yarrenyty Arltere Learning Centre, in response to chronic social issues facing the community. The enterprise was formally established in 2008 with support from the philanthropic organisation Igniting Change. The community at Yarrenyty Arltere includes Arrernte, Western Arrernte, Luritja, Warlpiri, Anmatyerr, Alyawarr, and Gurindji families. The centre operates under the umbrella of Tangentyere Artists, the hub for Town Camp arts across Alice Springs. Yarrenyty Arltere Artists have twice won the NATSIAA 3D art award at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, and in 2018 exhibited at the 21st Biennale of Sydney at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.
Yarrenyty Arltere Artists at a glance
- Location: Larapinta Valley Town Camp (Yarrenyty Arltere), Alice Springs (Mparntwe), NT.
- Established: 2000 as arts training project. Formally established as enterprise 2008.
- People: Arrernte, Western Arrernte, Luritja, Warlpiri, Anmatyerr, Alyawarr, and Gurindji families.
- Art forms: Soft sculpture (recycled bush-dyed blankets), textiles, printmaking, etching, animation and film.
- Notable artists: Marlene Rubuntja, Trudy Inkamala, Dulcie Sharpe, Rhonda Sharpe, Rosabella Ryder, Cornelius Ebatarinja.
- Hub: Part of Tangentyere Artists, the central hub for Town Camp arts across Alice Springs.
