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Contemporary Aboriginal: Central and Western Desert Art

Contemporary Aboriginal: Central and Western Desert Art

The expanding central and western desert art movement began in Papunya in 1971 and these mesmerising paintings continue to delight audiences from all over the world.


Whilst coming from a very traditional starting point many artists have developed their individualistic style and are working in a highly contemporary style.


Whether the iconography of the paintings have origins in body painting, ground painting designs or highly significant decorations of ceremonial objects, the connection to country is at the heart of all paintings that are traditional Dreamings (sacred law) for which the artist is the custodian. 

They depict the stories of Ancestral beings who travelled during creation times singing the country into being.

The natural environment with its site-specific features (rocky outcrops, caves, rockholes etc.) where specific events happened and where ancestors camped are linked through Songlines and connect people with their country and with each other.


Even if the secret sacred “inside” meaning of the paintings is not revealed, through their visual language artists are able to communicate the vibration and intensity of their emotional experience to the viewer. As in all great art, you feel these paintings as well as see them. 


As most of the paintings are depictions of country and land formations viewed from an aerial perspective (as if we climbed high on a hill and looked in each direction), they can be hung either on the vertical or on the horizontal.

By the late 1980’s not only had this exciting new art movement gained momentum in Northern Australia, such as the Kimberley, Arnhemland and the Tiwi Islands, but state galleries, museums and art collectors had begun to acquire works as well as incorporating Aboriginal Art into major exhibition schedules.


Commercial galleries had also established a presence and would play a vital & powerful role in the ongoing development and marketing of the Contemporary Aboriginal Art Movement. In 1990, one such gallery which opened its doors in the heart of Australia was Gallery Gondwana.


Under the enthusiastic and visionary directorship of Roslyn Premont, (who previously managed the government gallery 'Centre for Aboriginal Artists' in Alice Springs) Gallery Gondwana committed itself to nurturing and advancing the work of both established and emerging indigenous artists from the Central, Western and Eastern desert regions as well as showcasing the best work of indigenous artists throughout Australia but also include the finest in Australian design and arts from the Asia and Pacific region.

The work of Gallery Gondwana artists (which comprises an exclusive group of cutting edge artists such as 18th NATSSIA Award winner Dorothy Napangardi and Dr George Tjapaltjarri) has featured in major national and international exhibitions, broadening the awareness and appreciation of audiences throughout the world.


Artists were provided with studio space encouraging and supporting experimentation as each artist explores the boundaries of their practice.


Back to Country trips were regularly facilitated by the gallery allowing artists to visit significant Dreaming sites which provide invaluable stimulus and inspiration for their painting practice.



The Contemporary Aboriginal Painting movement of Central Australia has evolved well beyond the crude house paint, composition board and lino of the early Papunya years. It has now been accepted & absorbed into the broader spectrum of Contemporary art in general, such as major state galleries and institutions playing a key role in purchasing major works by way of their own acquisition policies, hence acknowledging the cultural and artistic values of Contemporary Aboriginal Art.


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