Brenda Punytjina Armstrong, Honey Grevillea Dreaming, 91x91cm

• Aboriginal Artist - Brenda Punytjina Armstrong
• Community - Nyirripi/Amata
• Aboriginal Art Centre - Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation
• Catalogue number - 2886/20ny
• Materials - Acrylic on linen
• Size(cm) - H91 W91 D2
• Postage variants - Artwork is posted rolled for safe shipping
• Orientation - Painted from all sides and OK to hang as wished

'Kaliny-kalinypa' or 'ultukunpa' is a Pitjantjatjara word for the honey grevillea flower (Grevillea juncifolia). This plant grows in sandy soils on the spinifex plains and on sandhills. It is very tolerant to fire, and produces beautiful yellow flowers at the end of its branches after rain. 'Kaliny-kalinypa' nectar is a delicacy for many Aboriginal people. One can suck the nectar directly from the flowers, or strike the flower against the palm of one’s hand to gather the nectar, which can then be licked off. 'Kaliny-kalinypa' flowers can also be picked and soaked in a billycan of water to create 'honeywater' (cordial). Morning is the best time to gather the nectar from these plants.

In this painting, Brenda depicts the Dreaming of her maternal grandmother, Ruby Williamson. This 'kaliny-kalinypa' Dreaming comes from Pukara, a 'kapi tjukula' (rockhole, waterhole) southwest of Wingellina community in Western Australia. Pukara is her grandmother’s grandfather’s country. Here women dance and perform 'inma' (ceremonies) to increase the amount of nectar in the 'kaliny-kalinypa' flowers. Two rainbow serpents live in the waterhole at Pukara, which is why her paintings of this area are so colourful.

Both Brenda and her grandmother Ruby are Anangu people from Amata community in South Australia, approximately 115km south of Uluru (Ayers Rock).

Brenda was born on 24 September 1983 in Alice Springs, NT. She grew up in Amata, a community on Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) lands approximately 115km south of Uluru (Ayers Rock) in South Australia. Her mother, Nita Williamson, paints at the Tjala art centre in Amata. Brenda’s maternal grandmother, Ruby Williamson, was a renowned artist who also painted at the Tjala art centre. Brenda learned to paint her ‘kaliny-kalinypa Tjukurpa’ (honey grevillea [Grevillea juncifolia] Dreaming) from her grandmother. Her mother’s family taught her to speak Pitjantjatjara, while her father’s family taught her to speak Pertame, a southern dialect of Arrernte spoken in the Finke River region.

Brenda now lives and paints in Nyirrpi, a Warlpiri community approximately 160km west of Yuendumu. When she is not painting, she likes to listen to music, watch movies, read, and draw with pen and paper. She has one son, Caleb.