Joyce Huddleston, Mangarrjara, 65x54cm

• Aboriginal Artist - Joyce Huddleston
• Community - Ngukurr
• Aboriginal Art Centre - Ngukurr Arts Aboriginal Corporation
• Catalogue number - 494/19
• Materials - Acrylic on canvas 
• Size(cm) - H54 W65 D2  
• Postage variants - Artwork posted un-stretched and rolled for safe shipping
• Orientation - As displayed

"Mangarrjara is my mothers land, two of my grandfathers are buried out there, it is also a good place to go camping and fishing for barramundi"

Joyce has had no formal art training – her natural style is at times gentle and reflective, presenting images of whirlpools in billabongs and country wildflowers.  She has developed her style from a passion for colour and by watching her elders paint. The Huddleston family name has long been associated with talented artists, and many in Joyce’s family, including her mother Gertie Huddleston, have achieved major recognition for their work. Joyce has been painting at Ngukurr Arts since 2000 and travels out to her Mother’s Country to reconnect with her culture and stories and to find inspiration for her work. 

Ngukurr Arts Centre sits a stone’s throw from the banks of the Roper River in South East Arnhem Land. Ngukurr Arts, like the town of Ngukurr itself, is unique – bringing together people of many different clans and language groups.

There has never been one distinct school or style associated with Ngukurr Arts but what is typical of the work is boldness – the legacy of artists who have gone before, such as Ginger Riley, Gertie Huddlestone, Sambo Barra Barra and Maureen Thomson. Over time, Ngukurr artists have become renowned for their adventurous styles in interpreting stories and landscapes.

Today, artists are supported to explore new techniques. Each artist recontextualises the technique in relation to their own country and culture, to create works that are wholly unique.

In this place of many stones, diversity is a strength. Many artists of different influences work alongside each other balancing the old and the new, passing on the stories that link us all.

Text: Courtesy Ngukurr Arts Aboriginal Corporation