Walilmalil Ngarrangkarni (Flying Fox Dreaming), 2001

natural earth pigments on canvas

120 x 90 cm

$6,250

Secure payment via Stripe. Prices in AUD.

Provenance: Warmun Art Centre, Kununurra, WA, Cat no. WAC150/01
Artwork story: In the Ngarrangkarni (Dreamtime) one man went to a waterhole at Wandilwoon behind Bedford Downs Station) where he hunted walilmalil (flying fox bats). He climbed up a paperbark tree and killed all the walilmalil, which fell into the water. He was greedy and didn't stop when he had what he needed. He climbed right up the tree to where all the walilmall were hanging until one branch broke off and he fell into the water where goorlabal the Dreamtime snake swallowed him up. Goorlabal held him there in his stomach, for almost a day, but the man was lucky that he had a wooden mangada (tool used for sharpening spearheads) attached to his gooda (hair belt). Goorlabal had to vomit him up on the bank because the mangada was sticking him in the stomach. Goorlabal went back into the water and later came up again to check on the man. The man was still alive but he didn't move and didn't even breathe, so goorlabal thought he was dead and went back into the water. The man stretched his legs and then took off into the rocky, sharp manjal (quartz) country and ran for his life. Goorlabal came up again to check on him and chased him for a bit, but the rocks were too sharp for his sore guts and he gave up. When the man got back to camp the people asked him what was wrong. He wouldn't tell them at first, but then he told them that he was lucky because goorlabal had got him and only his mangada saved him. The old people told him that he should not have killed so many walilmalil. They had warned him about it and warned him not to go there. The two pink figures are two other men who sang out for their family but couldn't be saved from goorlabal. This is a dangerous place where young people are not allowed to go by themselves - they must go with the manumbarra (boss) for that country.

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Madigan Thomas

1927 – 2011

Region: Kimberley
Community: Baluwa (Violet Valley)
Language group: Gija (Kija, Gidja, Kitja)

Walilmalil Ngarrangkarni (Flying Fox Dreaming), 2001

natural earth pigments on canvas

120 x 90 cm

$6,250

Secure payment via Stripe. Prices in AUD.

Provenance: Warmun Art Centre, Kununurra, WA, Cat no. WAC150/01
Artwork story: In the Ngarrangkarni (Dreamtime) one man went to a waterhole at Wandilwoon behind Bedford Downs Station) where he hunted walilmalil (flying fox bats). He climbed up a paperbark tree and killed all the walilmalil, which fell into the water. He was greedy and didn't stop when he had what he needed. He climbed right up the tree to where all the walilmall were hanging until one branch broke off and he fell into the water where goorlabal the Dreamtime snake swallowed him up. Goorlabal held him there in his stomach, for almost a day, but the man was lucky that he had a wooden mangada (tool used for sharpening spearheads) attached to his gooda (hair belt). Goorlabal had to vomit him up on the bank because the mangada was sticking him in the stomach. Goorlabal went back into the water and later came up again to check on the man. The man was still alive but he didn't move and didn't even breathe, so goorlabal thought he was dead and went back into the water. The man stretched his legs and then took off into the rocky, sharp manjal (quartz) country and ran for his life. Goorlabal came up again to check on him and chased him for a bit, but the rocks were too sharp for his sore guts and he gave up. When the man got back to camp the people asked him what was wrong. He wouldn't tell them at first, but then he told them that he was lucky because goorlabal had got him and only his mangada saved him. The old people told him that he should not have killed so many walilmalil. They had warned him about it and warned him not to go there. The two pink figures are two other men who sang out for their family but couldn't be saved from goorlabal. This is a dangerous place where young people are not allowed to go by themselves - they must go with the manumbarra (boss) for that country.