Evelyn Nangala Robertson, Ngapa Jukurrpa - Puyurru, 91x30cm

• Aboriginal Artist - Evelyn Nangala Robertson
• Community - Nyirripi  
• Aboriginal Art Centre - Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation  
• Catalogue number - 904/20ny 
• Materials - Acrylic on linen 
• Size(cm) - H91 W30 D2 
• Postage variants - Artwork posted un-stretched and rolled for safe shipping
• Orientation - Painted from all sides and OK to paint as wished

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.

Evelyn Nangala Robertson was born in 1986 in Alice Springs Hospital, the closest hospital to Yuendumu, a remote Aboriginal community 290 km north-west of Alice Springs in Australia. She is the daughter of Tina Napangardi Martin Robertson and grand-daughter of Shorty Jangala Robertson, both artists in their own right. Evelyn attended the local school in Yuendumu. In 2005 she moved to Nyirripi with her family and still lives there. She has worked for the Child Care Centre and the local shop and now works at the school. She is married to Kenneth Jungarrayi Martin, also an artist with Warlukurlangu Artists. She has one son, Rhys, born in 2004 from a previous relationship.

Evelyn has been painting with Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation; an Aboriginal owned and governed Art Centre, since 2007. She mainly paints her Grandfather’s Jukurrpa stories, but also her Father’s and her Grandmother’s Jukurrpa, Dreamings which relate directly to her land, its features and the plants and animals that inhabit it. “As a little girl I use to watch My Grandmother and Mum paint and they would tell me a story about the painting, the dream-time”. Evelyn uses an unrestricted palette to develop a modern interpretation of her traditional culture.

When Evelyn is not working or painting she likes to spend time with her family and with her friends.