The Warmun Art Centre is located in the East Kimberley, Western Australia, half way between Halls Creek and Kununurra, along the Great Northern Highway.
Warmun Art Centre, East Kimberley, W.A
Early in March 2011, ABC headlines read:
Warmun floods devastate a community and their art.
In the space of a few short hours on Sunday, Turkey Creek rose beyond measure after 130mm of rain in 24 hours, and inundated the community of Warmun. The school, many houses and the store have suffered serious water damage. But possibly the most heart-breaking event for many residents is the irreparable damage to the community's thriving Art Centre. read the rest of the story and watch the video.
This story tells about the conservation of the Warmun Art Collection in Melbourne, after the floods.
Patrick Mung Mung with his father's work - rescued from the Warmun floods
The beautiful natural ochres of the artwork of this region are a must for any aboriginal art collection, but it has never been more important to buy the art from the community as they strive to rebuild their centre and their livelihoods.
About Warmun
Warmun Community Art Centre was established in 1998 by leading artists of the Warmun (Turkey Creek) community.
Watch the video about Mabel Juli, produced by ABC Open and Warmun artist Roseleen Park. It really captures the depth of her personality and life experiences well.
Warmun Art is at the forefront of contemporary Indigenous art in Australia. Today, internationally renowned artists including Lena Nyadbi, Mabel Juli, Patrick Mung Mung, Rusty Peters, Shirley Purdie, Churchill Cann and Betty Carrington lead the way for more than sixty emerging and younger artists, whose artistic practices are part of a continuum that emerged in the late 1970’s from the painted boards created by Paddy Jaminji and Rover Thomas and used in the Gija peoples’ Gurirr Gurirr song and dance cycle.
The Gurirr Gurirr came to Rover Thomas when a woman’s spirit, who had died in a car crash during the big rains of Cyclone Tracey, visited him in a dream. From this point on some of Australia’s most significant Indigenous artists, including Rover Thomas, Queenie McKenzie, Jack Britten and Hector Jandany, passed their traditional stories and painting techniques to the Warmun community through their art.
The Warmun Art Centre was established in 1998 by leading artists of the Warmun (Turkey Creek) community. The centre is owned and governed by the artists. Operating a studio and gallery, cultural projects and professional development and training. Warmun Art provides artists with economic independence and the opportunity to practice and share their Gija culture and country with its visitors.
Characterised by a distinctive style of bold earthy tones and rich textures generated from ochres gathered across Gija country, Warmun artists depict stories from their country that explore the Ngarranggarni (Dreaming), post-contact histories and contemporary experiences.
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The Warmun artist group own and manage the Centre. Operating predominately as a studio, it provides artists with economic independence and the opportunity to share their Gija culture and country with its visitors.
Rover Thomas
These new generation Warmun artists use the same materials and stories as their predecessors. Their works display a fresh, original and vibrant style that transcends cultural boundaries and places many Warmun artists at the forefront of contemporary art in Australia.
Using a technically unique style, Warmun artists use traditional ochre and natural pigments hand collected in the Kimberley. Each work depicts traditional Ngarrangkarni (Dreaming) stories as well as contemporary events in artists’ life experiences.
Old Man and Glen Carrington
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Artists: from left, seated, Lorraine Daylight,
Mabel Juli; standing, Marika Mung, Jane Yalunga,
Denise Mung, Rose Clifton
Today, a number of internationally renowned ochre painters such as Lena Nyadbi, Mabel Juli, Madigan Thomas, Phyllis Thomas and Betty Carrington lead the way for more than sixty emerging and younger artists who currently paint for the Centre.
Ground natural ochres ready for painting
Warmun Kids
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