Women's Body Paint Designs by Abie Kemarre Loy 61x198cm CAT 5108AL

In this lyrical Body Painting artwork, Abie Kemarre Loy creates in her work “ Awelye ”, the ceremonial designs that custodial women use in “women’s business”. These women dreamtime stories are passed down through the female line during which the women paint their bodies in ochres, singing and dancing. This is called “ Awelye ”.

Building on the curvature of the woman’s form Abie creates a scalloped effect with her repetition of the motif as it ripples across the surface of the canvas. The monochromatic use of paint builds a sensual depth into this work that alludes to “women’s business” which we as outsiders are provided with only a glimpse of its possible meaning.

Abie has always been surrounded by senior women heavily involved in maintaining culture, who were themselves great artists. She was a child when her mother Margaret Loy and her grandmother Gloria Petyarre were involved in the Utopia batik project and learnt from them her inherited dreaming stories which she then translated into art. She became successful at a young age, initially through shows in Paris and has since been widely exhibited and collected.