Artist: Belinda Golder Kngwarreye | Title: Bush Plum | Year: 2020 | Medium: synthetic polymer paint on Belgian linen | Dimensions: 150 x 150 cm
PROVENANCE
This is Aboriginal Art, NT
Coo-ee Art Gallery, NSW
ARTWORK STORY
Belinda is the daughter of noted Utopian artist Janet Golder and is following in the footsteps of other well known artists from the talented Kngwarreye family, most notably Emily Kane, Kudditji and Polly Ngale. She typically pants the same story as Polly, 'Bush Plum', and uses heavily layered paint to depict the foliage of the plant.
The conkerberry (or conkleberry) known as anwekety or bush plum, is a sweet black berry that is favoured by desert Aboriginals. They only grow on the plant (Carissa lanceolata) for a few weeks of the year, however Belinda's people collect plenty of them and store them dry, soaking them in water again before being consumed. The plant of the conkerberry is a tangled, spiny shrub that can grow up to 2m high. After rain fragrant white flowers bloom. This plant also bares medicinal properties. The orange inner bark from the roots can be soaked in water and the resultant solutions can be used as a medicinal wash. This is particularly favoured for skin and eye conditions. The thorns on the shrub can be sued to sure warts.
Artist Profile
COMMUNITY/ REGION
Utopia, NT
LANGUAGE
Alyawarre
BIOGRAPHY
Belinda Golder belongs to the Anmatyerre language group, originating from Utopia near Alice Springs in Central Australia. She is deeply rooted in a family lineage of prominent artists. Her grandmother, Polly Ngale, is a celebrated artist from Utopia, and her artistic legacy continues through Belinda's mother, Bessie Purvis Petyarre, and sister, Janet Golder. Belinda's great aunts, Kathleen Ngale and Angelina Ngale, are also esteemed artists.
Belinda specialises in depicting the "Bush Plum Dreaming" story, an inheritance from her grandmother. Her artworks vividly portray the transformation of the bush plum (Anwekety) throughout its ripening process, capturing the myriad colours of the fruit. The bush plum is a central element in the Jukurrpa (Dreaming) stories, symbolising the seed dispersal across ancestral lands by the wind, which is a foundational aspect of Anmatyerre culture.
The conkerberry, known locally as Anwekety, features prominently in Belinda's paintings. This plant, scientifically named Carissa lanceolata, is noted for its brief fruiting period and the sweet, black fruit it produces, which is highly valued by the desert communities. The tangled, spiny shrub not only provides nourishment but also possesses medicinal properties; its orange inner bark is used in traditional remedies for skin and eye ailments, and its thorns are employed in the treatment of warts.
Belinda's painting technique, inspired by the renowned artist Emily Kame Kngwarreye, involves a distinctive method of loading her brush with multiple colour tones and applying them through a dotting technique. This approach, often executed with the paint wet, allows the colours to merge on the canvas, creating dynamic, fluid representations. Her preferred medium is acrylic on canvas.
Main Art Themes:
Bush Plum Dreaming: Represents the life cycle of the bush plum and its significance in the Dreamtime.
Atnwelarre (Pencil Yam)
Kame (Pencil Yam Seed)
Awelye (Women's Ceremony and Body Paint Designs): Depicts the traditional body paint and ceremonial designs used by Anmatyerre women.
Through her art, Belinda Golder continues to preserve and share the rich cultural heritage of her people, portraying significant stories and traditions of the Anmatyerre community.
© Adrian Newstead
PROVENANCE
This is Aboriginal Art, NT
Coo-ee Art Gallery, NSW
ARTWORK STORY
Belinda is the daughter of noted Utopian artist Janet Golder and is following in the footsteps of other well known artists from the talented Kngwarreye family, most notably Emily Kane, Kudditji and Polly Ngale. She typically pants the same story as Polly, 'Bush Plum', and uses heavily layered paint to depict the foliage of the plant.
The conkerberry (or conkleberry) known as anwekety or bush plum, is a sweet black berry that is favoured by desert Aboriginals. They only grow on the plant (Carissa lanceolata) for a few weeks of the year, however Belinda's people collect plenty of them and store them dry, soaking them in water again before being consumed. The plant of the conkerberry is a tangled, spiny shrub that can grow up to 2m high. After rain fragrant white flowers bloom. This plant also bares medicinal properties. The orange inner bark from the roots can be soaked in water and the resultant solutions can be used as a medicinal wash. This is particularly favoured for skin and eye conditions. The thorns on the shrub can be sued to sure warts.
Artist Profile
COMMUNITY/ REGION
Utopia, NT
LANGUAGE
Alyawarre
BIOGRAPHY
Belinda Golder belongs to the Anmatyerre language group, originating from Utopia near Alice Springs in Central Australia. She is deeply rooted in a family lineage of prominent artists. Her grandmother, Polly Ngale, is a celebrated artist from Utopia, and her artistic legacy continues through Belinda's mother, Bessie Purvis Petyarre, and sister, Janet Golder. Belinda's great aunts, Kathleen Ngale and Angelina Ngale, are also esteemed artists.
Belinda specialises in depicting the "Bush Plum Dreaming" story, an inheritance from her grandmother. Her artworks vividly portray the transformation of the bush plum (Anwekety) throughout its ripening process, capturing the myriad colours of the fruit. The bush plum is a central element in the Jukurrpa (Dreaming) stories, symbolising the seed dispersal across ancestral lands by the wind, which is a foundational aspect of Anmatyerre culture.
The conkerberry, known locally as Anwekety, features prominently in Belinda's paintings. This plant, scientifically named Carissa lanceolata, is noted for its brief fruiting period and the sweet, black fruit it produces, which is highly valued by the desert communities. The tangled, spiny shrub not only provides nourishment but also possesses medicinal properties; its orange inner bark is used in traditional remedies for skin and eye ailments, and its thorns are employed in the treatment of warts.
Belinda's painting technique, inspired by the renowned artist Emily Kame Kngwarreye, involves a distinctive method of loading her brush with multiple colour tones and applying them through a dotting technique. This approach, often executed with the paint wet, allows the colours to merge on the canvas, creating dynamic, fluid representations. Her preferred medium is acrylic on canvas.
Main Art Themes:
Bush Plum Dreaming: Represents the life cycle of the bush plum and its significance in the Dreamtime.
Atnwelarre (Pencil Yam)
Kame (Pencil Yam Seed)
Awelye (Women's Ceremony and Body Paint Designs): Depicts the traditional body paint and ceremonial designs used by Anmatyerre women.
Through her art, Belinda Golder continues to preserve and share the rich cultural heritage of her people, portraying significant stories and traditions of the Anmatyerre community.
© Adrian Newstead
