Margaret Donegan, Wati Kutjara Wanampi, 101x76cm

• Aboriginal Artist - Margaret Donegan
• Community - Kalka
• Aboriginal Art Centre - Ninuku Arts
• Catalogue number - 23-067
• Materials - Acrylic on canvas  
• Size(cm) - H101 W76 D2  
• Postage variants - Artwork posted un-stretched and rolled for safe shipping
• Orientation - Painted from all sides and OK to hang as wished

Margaret is painting her father, the late Mr. Donegan's Tjukurpa (Dreaming story) from an important site known as Pukara, south-west of Irrunytju (Wingellina community) in Western Australia. It is the story of Wati Kutjara Wanampi (two male water serpents) - a father and son - who are living at a waterhole. According to the story, Anangu tjuta (lots of people) went to that rockhole for the kapi (water), which is said to taste sweet. This upset the father and he told them to go back to their own country. Once the people left, the father and son travelled to Willuna, where they camped for weeks. They then return to Pukara. One day they were sleeping, but were awoken by a loud buzzing sound. The Minyma Punpunpa (the female flies) had been attracted to the honey grevillea plants found near the waterhole. It prompted the father and son to get up and go to collect the honey from the plants. It is there that the Wati Mututa (male black ants) appeared. They speared the son in his side. When the son started vomiting, he produced the seeds of all the different varieties of honey grevillea plants that are still found there today. They include kaliny-kalinypa, ultukunpa, piruwa and witjinti.

Margaret Donegan is the daughter of renowned artist Jimmy Donegan (Telstra Award winner in 2010) and was born in Alice Springs in 1971. As a little girl she was unwell and lived in Adelaide at the Children's Hospital before moving to Amata where her father worked as a stockman. The family then moved Pipalyatjara in the 1970's where she attended a small school called the Spinifex School. As an adult she lived in Blackstone in Western Australia and started her career there as a painter and arts worker. It was in Blackstone where she worked alongside her mother on the Tjanpi Toyota which won the Telstra Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Art Award in 2005. She now lives with her family in Kalka Community where she continues her arts practice in painting, wood carving and basket making and is a key arts worker at the arts centre.

Margaret paints designs associated with the Minyma Kutjara, Wati Ngintaka and Seven Sisters stories.

Ninuku Arts is a wholly-Indigenous owned and governed Art Centre which supports artists from two communities - Pipalyatjara and Kalka. Each have populations of around 100-150 Anangu and the majority are Pitjantjatjara speakers – Anangu simply means ‘people’ in Pitjantjatjara. Both communities are located in the far north-western corner of South Australia, near the tri-state border of South Australia, Western Australia and Northern Territory. The two communities, fourteen kilometres apart, are surrounded by the rolling, rocky hills of the Tomkinson Ranges and are part of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands. Both Kalka and Pipalyatjara are peaceful places. This is a result of strong governance, cultural engagement and pride among local Anangu. 

The Art Centre itself is located in Kalka and is housed in a mud-brick building (the only one in the Lands), which was built as an office in the early 1980’s by Anangu and white staff, and has since been extended to accommodate the growing number of artists keen to paint. A silver bullet caravan (formerly a mobile health unit) is also located on site, and has become a place for some artists to paint, mostly during the winter months while the morning sun warms the deck. Despite being the most remote art centre on the APY Lands, having limited working space and access to services, Ninuku Arts has continued to grow in success with each year. The artist’s commitment to both the art centre and painting is unflappable. The art centre prides itself on its inclusivity (providing opportunities for all generations) and embracing individuality in artists.

We take great pride in offering high-quality, authentic Aboriginal Art pieces to you. However, we are aware that there have been instances (and recent press relating to the unaffiliated APYACC) in the Aboriginal Art market where the authenticity of some artworks has been called into question. We want to assure you and all of our customers that we firmly stand behind the authenticity of every artwork we sell.

In addition to our extended 120 days standard returns, we are pleased to offer a lifetime money-back authenticity guarantee to all customers who purchase Aboriginal Art from us, both past and present. This guarantee covers any disrepute or wrongdoing in association with the authenticity of any Aboriginal artwork sold by ART ARK®. We understand that purchasing authentic Aboriginal Art is important to you, and we want to provide you with peace of mind in knowing that they are getting what you paid for.

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