/https://agsa-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/media/dd/images/HQ-20182A4A_01_29-04-24.5f1f1de.jpg)
Emily Kam Kngwarray
Emily Kam Kngwarray's deep connection to her culture and homeland profoundly shaped her remarkable artistic career, which blossomed later in life and left a memorable mark on the art world.
An Anmatyerre woman, Kngwarray was born around 1910 on her clan's Alhalkere Country, located in the Utopia region of the Northern Territory. Her early life was steeped in stories and messages about her family, community, ancestors, and the natural world surrounding Alhalkere Country.
In her younger years, Kngwarray worked on pastoral stations and in mines. By the time she was in her 60s, she played a pivotal role in helping return the Utopia region to its traditional owners. This period also marked a turning point in her life, during which she began channelling her vast cultural knowledge into artistic expression.
Though Kngwarray was already an accomplished artist, through the women’s ceremonial practice of body painting (Awelye), it wasn’t until the late 1980s that she emerged as a successful and renowned artist. By then, Kngwarray was an Elder and senior law woman deeply rooted in her traditions.
Exploring Kngwarray’s pieces from the 1970s to the 1990s reveals the evolution of her talent, sharpened and refined by her choice of medium and inspiration. Her early works, such as Batik Shirt (1984), show an artist honing her craft through years of practice.
Her journey into batik began in 1977 when she and other women from Utopia participated in a workshop that introduced them to the art form. The collaborative nature of batik-making mirrored the communal and ceremonial aspects of their lives, making it an ideal medium for artistic activities. Captivated by batik’s possibilities, they formed the Utopia Women’s Batik Group in 1978.
Batik-making involved heating wax over an open fire and using it to create intricate designs on fabric. After dyeing, the wax would block the dye, creating layered colours and motifs as new layers of wax and dye were applied.
Kngwarray’s batik designs reflected her intimate connection to Alhalkere and Awelye, depicting the landscape, flora, fauna, seasons, and spirituality of the land and her ancestors. Her motifs often featured lines, dots, abstract symbols, and figures that told stories of her Country.
Kngwarray and the Utopia Women’s Batik Group occasionally produced garments from their textiles. One notable piece, Batik Shirt (1984), is a rich, earthy work filled with organic motifs that symbolise Alhalkere Country and Awelye. Made from cotton, the shirt underwent multiple processes to achieve its brown, orange, and yellow colours and detailed design. The complementary earth and fire colouring give it a solemn yet joyful quality that enhances the shirt’s simplicity.
By the late 1980s, Kngwarray transitioned to synthetic polymer painting on canvas. Her works quickly garnered public attention, standing out for their vibrant portrayals of cultural practices translated into contemporary forms.
Kngwarray passed away in the mid-1990s, creating over 3,000 works in less than a decade. She is one of the most celebrated Aboriginal artists worldwide, and her contributions to the art world continue to inspire, serving as a powerful expression of cultural practice, spirituality, and Country.
/https://agsa-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/media/dd/images/HQ-20182A4A_02_29-04-24.2a821b8.jpg)
Emily Kam Kngwarray, Anmatyerre people, Northern Territory, born Alhalkere (Alalgura) soakage, Northern Territory c.1910, died Mparntwe (Alice Springs), Northern Territory 2/09/1996, Batik shirt, 1984, Utopia, Northern Territory, cotton, 79.4 x 148.0 cm (arms outstretched), 79.4 x 57.5 cm (pit to pit); Gift of Professor Jon Altman through the Art Gallery Foundation 2018. Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide © Estate of Emily Kame Kngwarreye/Copyright Agency
In early 1985 social scientist Jon Altman attended a meeting of the newly formed Aboriginal Land Rights National Support Group. While there fabric pieces, T-shirts and just a few second-hand decorated cotton shirts were being sold on behalf of the Utopia Women’s Batik Group. Altman purchased this Batik Shirt by Emily Kam Kngwarray. As Altman explains: 'It was envisaged that some of the proceeds of the sales would assist Aboriginal traditional owners from the Northern Territory to travel to Canberra to protest the proposal by the Hawke Labor Government to introduce a Preferred National Land Rights Model. The model was controversial because, if enacted, it would have diluted key elements of the Commonwealth’s Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976, especially the right of Aboriginal landowners to veto exploration and mining on their land.'The shirt is now forty years old and it's life's journey began with its decoration by Emily in Utopia and its subsequent sale in the context of political activism, in this instance, to successfully advocate for the retention of progressive land rights law. [1]
Artists often create works of art in response to social or political issues. For example, in 1975 a photograph taken by Mervyn Bishop captured Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam pouring earth into the hands of Vincent Lingiari in a symbolic gesture of returning lands back to the Gurindji people. A painting by Richard Bell, The Sign Says It (2017), was based on a historical black and white photograph taken at a protest in Darwin in 1960s where Gurindji people travelled from Wave Hill in the Northern Territory, 600km south of Darwin, to demonstrate against a Bill before the Northern Territory Parliament, which would lead, if not passed, to a loss of Aboriginal reserve land.
- Research Aboriginal Land Rights such as Yirrkala Bark Petitions, Wave Hill Walk-off, Mabo Case and The Native Title Act. Select one to investigate in detail. Using works of art discuss how artists have responded to the history of Aboriginal people’s rights and freedoms post 1950.
[1] J. Altman, Radical Textiles Catalogue, The Cultural Transition of 'the Emily' shirt', 2024, pg. 132
- Batik is technique of wax-resistant dyeing originating from Indonesia. Tjanting is a pen-like tool used to apply liquid hot wax to material in the production of batik (in which molten wax is poured (into) and then used to decorate the surface of the cloth) in often fluid non-geometric designs. Traditionally the tool consisted of a copper wax-container with small pipe spout and bamboo handle. With a candle draw your favourite native plant or flower on a piece of paper. Paint over your drawing with watercolour paint and watch your image appear like magic. Take it further by making your next invisible drawing a collaborative one!
- Kngwarray’s batik designs reflected her intimate connection to Alhalkere and Awelye, depicting the landscape, flora, fauna and seasons. What is your favourite season? What colours do you associate with this season? Using these colours create a drawing or painting that captures an element of this season. Perhaps you like watching the Jacaranda trees bloom in summer or the lightening storms we sometime experience in winter or spring.
- Batik Shirt (1984) by Kngwarray symbolises Alhalkere Country and Awelye. Using an old shirt or fabric create a design that represents the place where you live. You might like to experiment with dying your shirt or fabric first.
/https://agsa-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/media/dd/images/48421-HQ-821A4A.48a7623.jpg)
Emily Kam Kngwarray, Anmatyerre people, Northern Territory, born Alhalkere (Alalgura) soakage, Northern Territory c.1910, died Mparntwe (Alice Springs), Northern Territory 2 September 1996, Length of fabric, 1981, Utopia Station, Northern Territory, silk, batik, 220.0 x 90.0 cm; South Australian Government Grant 1982, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, © Estate of Emily Kame Kngwarreye/Copyright Agency.