JOHN MAWURNDJUL

There is a defining line between John Mawurndjul’s earliest works and those created later. While an in-depth analysis recognizes the genesis of his new abstracted vision in his early figurative imagery, (see artists profile above) the success of Mawurndjul’s painting on the secondary market is nonetheless highly selective. His highest record prices at auction feature large expanses of fine cross hatching with very few or no figurative elements. In 2007, three of the five works offered at auction entered Mawurndjul’s top ten results. This was hardly surprising given the tremendous exposure he had received after internationally publicized shows in Europe and his Musee de Quai Branly commission. As a result, he entered the same league as a small number of stellar secondary market performers, including Tommy Watson and Paddy Bedford. The following years went on to prove that Mawunjul’s primary market success was set to continue into secondary market prominence.

2015 was an excellent year for the artist in terms of his top ten records. Notably, Mardayin Design at Kakodbebuldi (2002), sold for $120,000, making him the ninth most successful artist that year, and selling seven of the eight works on offer. This top record was supplanted as recently as 2022 when Ngalyod Rainbow Serpent (2004), sold for $122.727, (Deutscher and Hacket). Furthermore, the last five years have seen his top ten results re- populated with six new sales, all of which jumped substantially over their estimated price. Works from the Laverty collection entered his top ten results in 2017, including the prominent figurative work, Buluwana (2001) which sold for $39,040. Mawunjul’s large figurative paintings remain of considerable value while his smaller and earlier barks have tended to drop in price or fail to sell at all and accordingly, depress his overall average rather misleadingly. However, over time a slow but steady increase in the value of Mawurndjul’s earlier works is noticeable and in view of sales in recent years, barks of the larger size and with figurative elements certainly do not languish on the shelf. In fact, six of the ten paintings in his current top ten sales were painted before 2000, including the Ngalyod (1993), sold by Deutscher and Hacket in 2025 for $79,773.

After his MCA major retrospective, I am the old and the new, 2018 (which then toured the country, including AGSA), Mawurndjul’s clearance rate at auction rose considerably, with very few works remaining unsold. 2020 showed the highest total sales figure at $360,825. Although this high level of anticipation for his work tailed off slightly in the following years, his death in December 2024 saw another spike in sales for 2025, confirming his deeply creative and much-loved status. Confidence in long established Maningrida art provenance is clearly visible on the primary market and flows through into the auction houses, though independently offered artworks can also generate excitement. As evidenced by his recent results, the appearance of any work by Mawunjul at auction inspires spirited bidding.