Dilly bag

Raymond Meeks is a Murrie from Far North Queensland; he was born in the Blue Mountains, N.S.W. Arone (the Black Crane) is the name he was given in a name giving ceremony with his tribal mother Thancoupie Athoy. His tribal area is Laura, where his grandfather was born. He studied art at the Queensland Institute of Technology and the Alexander Mackie College of Advanced Education/ City Art Institute, Sydney. He studied printmaking at school, but did not pursue it until he met Theo Tremblay of the Printmaking workshop at the Canberra School of Art in 1982-83, when they discussed making a series of prints together. "The directness and fluid qualities [of printmaking] have made it possible to introduce a freshness and immediacy to my work. It has always been necessary to explore new ways of expression and through this process I begin to create a new language of symbols". (Chris McGuigan (ed.), 'New tracks old land, contemporary prints from Aboriginal Australia', Sydney: Aboriginal Arts Management Association, 1992, pg. 64)

Hendrik Kolenberg and Anne Ryan, 'Australian prints from the Gallery's collection', AGNSW, 1998