Dhuwarrwarr Marika

Dhuwarrwarr Marika
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Born	1946 Yirrkala, Bremer Island
Nationality	Australian
Other names	Banuminy
Citizenship	Australia
Known for	Contemporary Indigenous Aboriginal Art
Parent(s)	Mawalan Marika (father)
Relatives	Wandjuk Marika Banduk Marika (sister) Bayngul Marika (sister) Mathaman Marika (uncle) Milirrpum Marika (uncle) Roy Dadayhga Marika (uncle) Wanyubi Marika (brother)
Family	Marika Family

Dhuwarrwarr Marika, also known as Banuminy, is a renown, female Australian Contemporary Indigenous Artist. She was born in 1946 in her homeland of Yirrkala, Bremer Island. She is a member of the Rirratjingu, Miliwurrwurr group and their language is Dhangu. She is part of the Dhuwa moiety. Her family, the Marika family, is well-known in the world of Aboriginal art; her father Mawalan Marika (1908-1967) and his brothers were talented artists who also passionately advocated for Indigenous rights. Mawalan Marika was a celebrated leader of the Rirratjingu people and he was one of the signatories of the 1963 Bark Petitions to The Australian Government. Before she started her art career, Dhuwarrwarr worked as a nurse in Yirrkala, Sydney, and Darwin. She is a dedicated mother, grandmother, and active community member. She has shown her dedication to her community by her presence on numerous local and national committees. She was a women’s council representative and executive member for the Northern land Council.

Career

She first learned her artistic skills from her family; her mother and aunt taught her basketry and her father, Mawalan 1, taught her the basics of Rirratjingu. Her father, Mawalan Marika broke conventions and taught her how to paint sacred designs, which are usually reserved for men to paint. Dhuwarrwarr is considered to be the first Yolngu woman authorized to paint sacred designs. Her most popular artistic mediums include ochres on bark, carved and painted wooden figures, print making, and weaving. The mediums which she often uses include earth pigments on Stringybark, Earth pigments on Stringybark hollow poles, Pandanus and Natural Dyes, Earth pigments on native hibiscus, Earth pigments on Ironwood, and Print Making. Her murals can be found in the Darwin Airport, the Atherton School in Queensland, the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, and across buildings in her community of Yirrkala. She has created numerous beautiful prints at the Yirrkala Print Space at the Buku Art Centre. At the Yirrkala Print Space, Dhuwarrwarr works alongside other female artists who are known to be leaders in innovation and change. She considers her artwork as a means of passing her culture to the next generations and a way of sharing her culture with the outside world.

Collections

Dhuwarrwarr Marika is featured in major public collections across the world, including:

• Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia
• National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
• National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
• Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
• Berndt Museum of Anthropology at the University of Western Australia, Perth
• Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin
• South Australian Museum, Adelaide
• Australian Capital Equity Collection, Perth WA
• University of Western Australia, Perth WA
• Nahum Gutman Museum of Art, London UK
• Kerry Paker Collection
• The Kelton Foundation Collection, Santa Monica, USA

Significant exhibitions

• "The Painters of the Wagilag Sisters Story 1937 - 1997" at the National Gallery of Australia
• "Balnnhdurr - A Lasting Impression" - Touring Exhibition
• "Saltwater Country - Bark Paintings from Yirrkala" - A National Tour in Australia
• "Milngurr - The Sacred Spring" at the Vivien Anderson Gallery
• "Tarnanthi" at the Art Gallery of South Australia
• "Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka: Mittji", at the Hugo Michell Gallery
• "Grey Areas" at the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery NYC

Awards

• 1990: Professional Development grant, from the Aboriginal Arts Unit of the Australia Council for the Arts

External links

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