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This painting depicts ‘malikijarra Jukurrpa’ (two dogs Dreaming). The ‘kirda’ (owners) of this Dreaming are Nampijinpa/Nangala women and Jampijinpa/Jangala men.
This Dreaming comes from country adjacent to the windmill at Warlarla (Rabbit Flat). This site is part of a long Dreaming track that stretches from Yarrajalpa in the extreme west of Warlpiri country to Warlaku (Ali Curung) in the east. In this Dreaming story, two dog ancestors, a Jampijinpa and a Napangardi, travelled from the west to the east. They began at Yarrajalpa (a waterhole) and travelled through Wirninginpa, Jinarli, Karljawarnu (a rockhole), Jilwirrpa, and Waanjurna (a rockhole). They dug holes in the ground and created ‘warnirri’ (rockholes) and ‘ngapa’ (waterholes) as they went.
At Tapu (a rockhole), the two dogs separated. The female dog, Napangardi, went to the south towards Ngamarnawarnu. The male dog, Jampijinpa, went to the north through Mukirri and Paruwu. Eventually he became lonely and howled for Napangardi in the south. She came running to him, and they married each other at Ngarnka. They wore men’s and women’s marriage headdresses, and Jampijinpa painted himself with white clay for the ceremony. After the wedding, they continued on slowly to the east through Kurduwijawija, Warlarla (Rabbit Flat), and Yurlpuwarnu (rockholes). At Yurlpuwarnu they started a fire using a ‘jimanypa’ (stick), a spear-thrower, and ‘yinirnti’ (bat-wing coral tree [Erythrina vespertilio]) wood for firewood. The dogs then continued east through Kulpurlunu (a waterhole) and Ngumurlungu, where they encountered some other dogs. However, these dogs sent them away while they performed a sacred ceremony.
The two dogs continued running east, past Jarramarda and Yankirrikirlangu, before arriving in Warlaku (Ali Curung). Many other dogs were living in Warlaku when they arrived. There were many families of dogs, mothers and fathers and children and uncles all living together. Jampijinpa and Napangardi made a burrow to rest in and started a big family of dogs there. They chose to stay in Warlaku and live with all the other dogs. In this way, the ‘malikijarra Jukurrpa’ (two dogs Dreaming) tells the story of proper conduct in families and marriages.
In Warlpiri paintings, traditional iconography is used to represent the Jukurrpa and other elements. The ribcages of the Jampijinpa, Napangardi, and their family of dogs are depicted in this work. Their ribs can also be seen as features in the landscape in the Yankirrikirlangu area. Concentric circles are used to represent the ‘ngapa’ (waterholes) around Yankirrikirlangu.
Vanetta Nampijinpa Hudson was born on 7 April 2001, in Alice Springs Hospital, the closest hospital to Nyirripi, a remote aboriginal community located approximately 430 km north-west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory of Australia. She is the daughter of Daphne Napururrla White and Peter Hudson and has two sisters. She is the granddaughter of Ursula Napangardi Hudson and Freda Napaljarri Jurrah. Vanetta went to the local school in Nyirripi before attending Worawa Aboriginal College in Melbourne, Victoria. A private boarding school catering for girls in the middle years of schooling. When she finished schooling she returned to Nyirripi.
Vanetta began painting with Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation, an Aboriginal owned and governed art centre located in Yuendumu and Nyirripi, in 2017. She paints her father’s Warlukurlangu Jukurrpa (Fire Dreaming), stories which relate directly to her land, its features and the plants and animals that inhabit it. These stories were passed down to her by her father and his father before him for millennia. She uses pattern and colour to develop a modern interpretation of her traditional culture.
When Vanetta is not painting, she likes to play softball or basketball with her friends.
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