Karrilwarra, from the suite Tjukurrpa Palurukutu, Kutjupawana Palyantjanya - same stories, a new way

In addition to showcasing the quality of Papunya Tula Artists as a whole, this suite of etchings emphasises the strength of each individual artist as they successfully translate their Tjukurrpa to the new medium of printmaking. Far from being a mere copy of their paintings in a different scale and medium each artists adapts their visual language to this new process with apparent ease, resulting in bold, confident works that are extraordinary in themselves, and when combined as a suite, are truly amazing.

The art centre documentation for this work states:

This etching depicts designs associated with the rockhole and soakage water site of Karrilwarra, west of the Pollock Hills in Western Australia. One of the stories that relates to this site concerns a snake that travelled through Karrilwarra to another site nearby known as Unkunya. After arriving at Unkunya the snake entered the ground which created the rockhole which still exists at the site. A large group of ancestral women also visited Unkunya on their travels towards the east. As the women travelled they stopped beside the rockholes and spun hair-string which is used in the making of Nyimparra (hair-belts). These are worn by both men and women while dancing during ceremonies. The women also ground kampurarrpa berries, or desert raisins, from the small shrub Solanum centrale. Once ground into a paste these berries are then cooked on the coals to form a type of damper.