Ganiny, 1996

natural earth pigments on stringy bark

174 x 52 cm

Sold

Provenance: Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Centre, Yirrkala, NT, Invoice No. 238 Private Collection, Albany NY
Artwork story: Painted at Matamata, the artist’s homeland, Ganiny depicts a sacred icon for the Gumatj clan group of the Yolngu people. It represents the hunting stick carried by a Yirritja Creator Being during Wayan (the time before Morning), its flight mapped through sacred song (Manikay). The intricate cross-hatching is the distinctive design of the Gumatj, symbolising both people’s ties to land and the elemental fire: red flame, white ash, black charcoal, and yellow dust. Burarrwanga’s execution here is taut and balanced, his diamonds radiating energy while anchored in cultural authority.

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b. 1953

natural earth pigments on stringy bark

174 x 52 cm

Sold

Provenance: Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Centre, Yirrkala, NT, Invoice No. 238 Private Collection, Albany NY
Artwork story: Painted at Matamata, the artist’s homeland, Ganiny depicts a sacred icon for the Gumatj clan group of the Yolngu people. It represents the hunting stick carried by a Yirritja Creator Being during Wayan (the time before Morning), its flight mapped through sacred song (Manikay). The intricate cross-hatching is the distinctive design of the Gumatj, symbolising both people’s ties to land and the elemental fire: red flame, white ash, black charcoal, and yellow dust. Burarrwanga’s execution here is taut and balanced, his diamonds radiating energy while anchored in cultural authority.