Pauline Napangardi Gallagher
Pauline Napangardi Gallagher was born in 1952 in Yuendumu, and now lives in Nyirripi, in the NT. Pauline is the custodian of two of her father’s Jukurrpa or Dreamings, passed down by him and the generations before for millennia. One is Pikilyi Jukurrpa or Dreaming, a sacred water hole, also known as Vaughan Springs which is Pauline’s country. The other is Mina Mina Jukurrpa which tells about the journey of a group of ancestral women of all ages who travelled far to the east beyond the boundaries of her Walpiri country.
The women began their journey at Mina Mina where the first digging sticks, “Karlangu”, emerged from the ground. Taking these with them, they created Janyinki and other sites and performed ceremonies as they travelled. They collected food and ‘ngalyipi’ (Tinospora smilacina), also known as Snake Vine which has medicinal qualities.
Pauline loves colour and uses an unrestricted palette with acrylics on canvas to develop a modern interpretation of her traditional Aboriginal culture.
Images and text courtesy of Warlukurlangu Artists, Yuendumu and Tali Gallery, Sydney.
