Introduction
Unit is proud to present Tjukurrpa: The Dreaming, a landmark exhibition, in collaboration with the SmithDavidson Collection, showcasing nine leading Indigenous Australian artists, opening in London, UK on Wednesday, July 9th.
The exhibition spotlights the extraordinary work of Aboriginal artists, most notably Emily Kam Kngwarray (c.1910-1996), the celebrated Anmatyerr painter now recognised globally as one of the 20th century’s most influential artists.
In anticipation of Kngwarray’s upcoming retrospective at Tate Modern, Tjukurrpa: The Dreaming arrives in London as a unique opportunity to take a wider look at the sublime power of one of the world’s oldest continuous painting traditions. The exhibition also looks beyond Kngwarray to survey her contemporaries and others later impacted by her work.
Alongside Kngwarray, the exhibition features prominent figures from the East Kimberly Art Movement and Western Desert Movement, including Rover Thomas Joolama, Paddy Nyunkuny Bedford, Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrla, Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri, Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri, Makinti Napanangka, Tommy Watson and Patrick Olodoodi Tjungurrayi.
For Indigenous Australian and First Nation peoples, Tjkurrpa or The Dreaming represents an eternal continuum where ancestral spirits shape life, landscapes and sacred sites. Transmitted through stories, art, ceremony, and song, the Dreaming is a vibrant reality deeply connected to specific places and central to identity, with individuals and cultural groups acting as custodians of particular Dreamings that guide their spiritual practices and relationships.
Selected Works
Emily Kam Kngwarray
Alalgura / Emu Dreaming
1989
150 x 120 cm
Emily Kam Kngwarray
Alhalkere, My Country
1995
151 x 211 cm
Emily Kam Kngwarray
Yam Dreaming
1995
199 x 305 cm
Emily Kam Kngwarray
Yam Dreaming
1995
120 x 90 cm
Emily Kam Kngwarray
Awelye (My Story)
1996
117 x 532 cm
Paddy Nyunkuny Bedford
Janterrji – Dolly Hole
2004
80 x 100 cm
Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula
Bush Tucker After Rain
1971
61 x 46 cm
Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri
Untitled (Marawa)
2019
76 x 84 cm
Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri
Mouse Story (Dreaming)
1997
182 x 122 cm
Rover Thomas Joolama
Cyclone Tracy – Willy Willy
1995
183 x 181 cm
Artists
Emily Kam Kngwarray (Anmatyerr), 1910-1996
Emily Kam Kngwarray was born in Alhalkere, Northern Territory, and lived most of her life in the Utopia region. A highly regarded contemporary Australian artist and celebrated female First Nations painter, her artistic journey began late in life. Joining the Utopia Women’s Batik Group in 1978 and transitioning to painting in 1988, her debut painting, Emu Woman, marked a prolific yet brief career. A senior member of the Anmatyerre language group and custodian of cultural sites, she began as a traditional ceremonial artist, learning women's ceremonies and Awelye designs. In 1988, she began painting on canvas, inspired by Dreamtime stories, employing an extraordinary array of styles. Her works are known for vibrant colors, abstract forms, and a deep connection to her land and culture. She developed the "dump-dump" style, using layered dots and later, minimalist line paintings. In 1992, she received an Australian Artists Creative Fellowship. Her impact transcends national borders, with a major retrospective in Tokyo and participation in the 56th Venice Biennale. The Tate Modern is set to host her first large-scale European solo exhibition in 2025.
Rover Thomas Joolama (Kukatja/Wangkajunga), 1926–1998
Pioneering First Nations artist Rover Thomas Joolama revolutionised Australian art. Born in north-western Australia to a Wangkajunga father and Kukatja mother, he worked as a stockman on various Kimberley cattle stations before settling in Warmun in 1975. His artistic journey began after a revelatory dream, the Gurirr Gurirr, following a 1974 car accident. The Gurirr Gurirr, a dance, song and visual art cycle, inspired his paintings, which merge past and present, myth and history, depicting the East Kimberley landscape in a distinctive gestural style with deep red and brown ochres. A central figure of the East Kimberley Painting Movement, Thomas influenced artists like Queen McKenzie and Paddy Bedford. His style evolved from his desert upbringing, incorporating aerial perspectives, map-like layouts, and symbolic images, blended with Kimberley ochre styles from rock painting and body designs. His work has been widely exhibited, and he was the first Indigenous Australian to represent Australia at the Venice Biennale in 1990.
Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri (Pintupi), b. 1958
Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri was born around 1958 east of Kiwirkurra in Western Australia. He grew up following the traditional lifestyle of the Western Desert people. In 1984, his group of nine Pintupi, known as the "last of the nomads," made contact with Western civilization. He began painting after observing other artists at Kiwirkurra and quickly became a leading artist with Papunya Tula Artists. In 1988, his first eleven paintings were acquired by the National Gallery of Victoria. He paints in two styles: geometric shapes for Tingari stories and lines of dots for dreamings of Lake Mackay. In 2000, he travelled to Sydney to make a ground painting at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. In 2012, his work was included in DOCUMENTA (13) in Kassel, Germany, and in 2015, he had his first solo exhibition in the United States. He paints Snake and Tingari Dreaming stories, including sites like Marawa and Kanapilya, and Malu (Kangaroo) Dreaming. His work is featured in many public and corporate collections.
Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri (Pintupi), 1923-1998
Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri was a celebrated Australian Indigenous painter and key figure in the Western Desert art movement. Born in Marnpi, Northern Territory, he was a member of the Pintupi people. His artistic journey began in the early 1970s when he joined the Papunya Tula Artists. Working with acrylic on canvas, he conveyed complex spiritual narratives through intricate dot patterns and geometric forms. His work evolved from vibrant, densely dotted compositions to minimalistic pieces emphasising subtle hues. Central to his paintings were the Dreamtime stories. He received numerous accolades, including the Alice Prize (1991) and the Red Ochre Award (1994). His work is held in major collections like the National Gallery of Australia. He was committed to preserving Pintupi traditions.
Tommy Watson (Pitjantjatjara), 1935-2017
Tommy Watson Yannima was a significant Australian Aboriginal artist. Born around 1935 near Anamarapiti in Western Australia, he belonged to the Pitjantjatjara people. He began his artistic career in the early 2000s at the age of 60. His paintings, characterized by bold colors, intricate compositions, and dotting techniques, depicted the landscapes and stories of his homeland. In 2002, Watson co-founded the Irrunytju Art Centre. His work gained national and international acclaim, exhibited in prestigious galleries like the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris. His art bridged traditional Aboriginal and contemporary aesthetics.
Makinti Napanangka (Pintupi), 1930-2011
Makinti Napanangka was a celebrated Pintupi artist and a leading figure in contemporary Indigenous Australian art. Born near Lake Macdonald, she began painting in the mid-1990s, becoming one of the pioneering women at Papunya Tula Artists. Her style, marked by expressive brushwork, vivid color, and dynamic composition, celebrated sacred stories, women’s ceremonies, and Country. In 1996, she formally joined Papunya Tula. Her work gained national and international recognition, featuring in major exhibitions like Papunya Tula: Genesis and Genius (2000). In 2008, she won the Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award.
Paddy Nyunkuny Bedford (Gija), 1922-2007
Paddy Nyunkuny Bedford was born at Bedford Downs Station in East Kimberley, Western Australia. Belonging to the Gija people, his family history was marked by clashes with white colonists. After working as a stockman, he began painting on canvas in 1998, joining the Jirrawun Arts group and becoming part of the East Kimberley/Turkey Creek movement led by Rover Thomas and Queenie McKenzie. His art, distinct from the central desert dot style, features blocks of single color interspersed with white dotted lines, creating an aerial perspective. Known for his graphic style, using striking colours and sparse lines, his works depict the East Kimberley landscape and Dreamtime stories associated with his family. He also addressed historical events, such as the Bedford Downs Massacre, emphasizing reconciliation. Bedford experimented with materials beyond traditional ochres, achieving rich, multifaceted layers in his paintings. In 2006, he was commissioned to create a permanent work for the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris and had a major retrospective at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney. Qantas later commissioned a livery for a Boeing 737-800 featuring his work.
Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula (Pintupi/Warlpiri), 1925-2001
Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula was a renowned Pintupi artist from Mintjilpirri, near Lake Mackay. Speaking the Western Desert language, he first encountered white civilization in 1930. A key figure in the early Australian First Nations Art movement, he helped paint the Honey Ant murals at Papunya in 1971, marking the beginning of his painting career. His distinctive style featured intricate dotting techniques, layered "overdotting," and symbolic storytelling based on Indigenous Dreamings, avoiding European influences. His paintings often portray Water Dreaming, as well as Yam, Fire, Dingo, Wallaby, and Egret Dreamings. His last works explored his deep connection with his birthplace at Tjakarri. In 1997, with support from artist Michael Hollow, he revived his practice, producing a final series of vibrant paintings. His works are held in major Australian museums and prized by international collectors.
Patrick Olodoodi Tjungurrayi (Manyjilyjarra, Kukatja), 1943-2017
Patrick Olodoodi Tjungurrayi was a renowned Australian First Nations artist and respected elder from the Pintupi and Kukatja communities. Beginning to paint in the early 1980s, his art depicted Tingari cycle and Rainbow Serpent Dreaming themes, blending traditional motifs with vibrant colors. In 2008, he received the inaugural Western Australian Indigenous Art Award. His works are held in major Australian institutions, including the Art Gallery of New South Wales, the Art Gallery of Western Australia, and the South Australian Museum.
Essay
How Emily Kam Kngwarray Painted Her Way to Legend
During a whirlwind painting career that lasted just eight years, octogenarian Emily Kam Kngwarray became Aboriginal Australia’s most successful living artist and carved an enduring presence in the history of Australian art.
By the time she passed away on September the 2nd 1996 her fame had achieved mythic status with the Sydney Morning Herald obituary reported the ‘Passing of a Home Grown Monet’. By this time comparisons with a number of great international artists including Pollock, Kandinsky, Monet and Matisse, had become commonplace. Emily was an artistic superstar, the highest paid woman in the country, who created one of the most significant artistic legacies of our time.
Catalogue
In the Press
It’s No Longer Just Aboriginal-Art Connoisseurs Buying Emily Kam Kngwarray’s Dazzling Work
Artnet News
Emily Kam Kngwarray at Tate Modern — Aboriginal stories in explosive colour
Financial Times
Contemporary Indigenous Artists Are Finally Taking Centre Stage in the UK
The Art Newspaper
Biography
Emily Kam Kngwarray (Anmatyerr, 1910-1996) was born in Alhalkere, Northern Territory, and lived most of her life in the Utopia region. A highly regarded contemporary Australian artist and celebrated female First Nations painter, her artistic journey began late in life. Joining the Utopia Women’s Batik Group in 1978 and transitioning to painting in 1988, her debut painting, Emu Woman, marked a prolific yet brief career.
A senior member of the Anmatyerre language group and custodian of cultural sites, she began as a traditional ceremonial artist, learning women’s ceremonies and Awelye designs. In 1988, she began painting on canvas, inspired by Dreamtime stories, employing an extraordinary array of styles. Her works are known for vibrant colors, abstract forms, and a deep connection to her land and culture. She developed the “dump-dump” style, using layered dots and later, minimalist line paintings.
In 1992, she received an Australian Artists Creative Fellowship. Her impact transcends national borders, with a major retrospective in Tokyo and participation in the 56th Venice Biennale. Her first large-scale European solo exhibition is currently showing at the Tate Modern.
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