Daniel Pata East MacDonnell Ranges

This image depicts a section of the East MacDonnell Ranges – a complex geological area in the Northern Territory, significant to Eastern Arrernte people. The ancestral wallaby trail is just beyond these hills.

I was drawn to the strata of rock that traverse the peaks and ridges, undulating in elegant movements and fascinating patterns. It is a dry area, but its evocative colour, dynamic shapes and rugged lyricism make it lush to the painter’s eye.

This particular location was close to our lodgings. The intriguing interplay between the slopes exudes many different moods in the course of a day, but none more dramatic than late afternoon, when a haze seems to fuse the distant hills.

Daniel Pata, 2021