Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery – ILKURLKA, The Art of the Spinifex People
(In House Catalogue)
The Spinifex People say 'Kapi ninti', Which translates roughly as, 'We know the water'. And in their harsh desert environment, knowing where the water holes are is essential to life. Such knowledge, to a large extent, forms the basis of the aboriginal concept fo ownership or custodianship - of the land. Demonstrating a profound knowledge of the many - and often hidden - waterholes across their 'country' was the foundation of the Spinifex People's successful claim to native title.
In paintings detailing these Dreamings the waterhole can appear, either as a central element, or a mere part of an intricate scheme. The aerial perspective and circumscribed iconography of Spinifex art means that the waterhole itself is most often rendered as a sinple circle. Nevertheless, despite the strong cartographic flavour of all aboriginal desert art, elements of the surrouinding landscape - the trees and grasses, the rolling sandhills - can be, and often are, represented or alluded to. The colouring too, of the paintings, though anti-naturalistic, is frequently significant.
Rebecca Hossack
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