Leah Nampijinpa Sampson, Ngapa Jukurrpa - Puyurru, 30x30cm

• Artist - Leah Nampijinpa Sampson
• Community - Yuendumu
• Art Centre/Community organisation - Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation
• Catalogue number - 4760/16
• Materials - Acrylic on pre-stretched canvas
• Size(cm) - H30 W30 D3.5
• Postage variants - Artwork is posted stretched and ready to hang

The site depicted in this painting is Puyurru, west of Yuendumu. In the usually dry creek beds are ‘mulju’ (soakages), or naturally occurring wells. The 'kirda' (owners) for this site are Nangala/Nampijinpa women and Jangala/Jampijinpa men. Two Jangala men, rainmakers, sang the rain, unleashing a giant storm. The storm travelled across the country from the east to the west, initially travelling with a ‘pamapardu Jukurrpa’ (termite Dreaming) from Warntungurru to Warlura, a waterhole 8 miles east of Yuendumu. At Warlura, a gecko called Yumariyumari blew the storm on to Lapurrukurra and Wilpiri. Bolts of lightning shot out at Wirnpa (also called Mardinymardinypa) and at Kanaralji. At this point the Dreaming track also includes the ‘kurdukurdu mangkurdu Jukurrpa’ (children of the clouds Dreaming). The water Dreaming built hills at Ngamangama using baby clouds and also stuck long pointy clouds into the ground at Jukajuka, where they can still be seen today as rock formations.

The termite Dreaming eventually continued west to Nyirripi, a community approximately 160 km west of Yuendumu. The water Dreaming then travelled from the south over Mikanji, a watercourse with soakages northwest of Yuendumu. At Mikanji, the storm was picked up by a ‘kirrkarlanji’ (brown falcon [Falco berigora]) and taken farther north. At Puyurru, the falcon dug up a giant ‘warnayarra’ (rainbow serpent). The serpent carried water with it to create another large lake, Jillyiumpa, close to an outstation in this country. The ‘kirda’ (owners) of this story are Jangala men and Nangala women. After stopping at Puyurru, the water Dreaming travelled on through other locations including Yalyarilalku, Mikilyparnta, Katalpi, Lungkardajarra, Jirawarnpa, Kamira, Yurrunjuku, and Jikaya before moving on into Gurindji country to the north.

In contemporary Warlpiri paintings, traditional iconography is used to represent the ‘Jukurrpa’ (Dreaming). Short dashes are often used to represent ‘mangkurdu’ (cumulus & stratocumulus clouds), and longer, flowing lines represent ‘ngawarra’ (flood waters). Small circles are used to depict ‘mulju’ (soakages) and river bed.

Leah Nampijinpa Sampson was born in 1990 in Alice Springs Hospital, the closest hospital to Yuendumu, a remote Aboriginal community located 290 km north-west of Alice Springs in the NT of Australia. Her mother is Lynette Napanangka Sampson, a Warlukurlangu artist and her father is Gregoy Sampson. She has two sisters and one brother. Leah attended the local school and graduated in 2006. While at school she enjoyed both English and Walpiri languages and has always loved painting. After leaving school Leah began painting at the Art Centre. She is married and has two sons and two grandsons.

Leah began painting with Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation, an Aboriginal owned and governed art centre located in Yuendumu, in 2007. She has painted consistently since then. She paints her parents’ Jukurrpa, in particular Karnta Jukurrpa (Women’s Dreaming), Jarnmarda Jukurrpa (Bush Onion Dreaming) and Ngatijirri Jukurrpa (Budgerigar Dreaming) from her mother’s side and Yankirri Jukurrpa(Emu Dreaming) and Ngapa Jukurrpa (Water Dreaming) from her father’s side. These stories have been passed down over the generations for millennia and relate directly to the land, its features and the plants and animals that inhabit it. “When I was young I would come to the Art Centre and watch my Mum paint and listen to the stories of the old people.” Leah uses an unrestricted palette to develop a modern interpretation of her traditional culture.

When Leah is not painting or looking after her grandsons she loves to go hunting with her friend for Yurrampi (honey ants).

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