A PAPUNYA STORY – FIRST NATIONS FINE ART AUCTION JUNE 2025

This curated selection of exemplary boards from the seminal stages of the Papunya movement. They are a fine representation what is widely considered to be the birthplace of the modern First Nations art movement as we know it.

The magic of these first paintings is in their direct link to their sacred, functional, and ceremonial origins. The paintings are direct translations of drawings in the sand onto canvas or board. In many cases, they represent some of the first archival recordings of an over 65,000-year-old culture.

Much has been written about the genesis of the painting movement in Papunya during the early 1970s. It may in fact be the most documented and studied area of ‘Australian’ First Nations fine art, thanks in part to the expansive documentation and first-hand accounts of Geoffrey Bardon, the school teacher who helped create

Papunya Tula Artists with the original group of approximately 20 ‘painting men.’ The group included John Kipara Tjakamarra (Lot 11), Old Walter Tjampitjinpa (Lots 12, 13, 15), Anatjari No. III Tjakamarra (Lot 14), and Long Jack Philippus Tjakamarra (Lot 16).

LOT 11 | JOHN KIPARA TJAKAMARRA (c.1932 - 2002)

WALINNGI (WOMEN CATCHING A SNAKE), 1973

57 x 34 cm; 73 x 60 cm (framed)

synthetic polymer powder paint on composition board

$30,000 - $40,000

PROVENANCE

Painted at Papunya, NT in 1973

Papunya Tula Artists, NT Cat No. JJ731226

Aboriginal Arts and Crafts, ACT

Anvil Gallery, Albury, NSW

Private collection, NSW

Sotheby’s Australia, Melbourne, Vic, April 1991, Lot No. 60

Private collection, NSW

Adhered verso: the Aboriginal Arts and Crafts Pty. Ltd. certificate and accompanied by the original Sotheby’s receipt

EXHIBITED

Aboriginal Art from Papunya, The Anvil Gallery, Albury, NSW, 1974

The influence of those formative years extends well beyond the original Papunya Tula artistic circle. It is visible not only in subsequent generations of Papunya Tula artists — such as Willy Tjungarrayi (Lot 26), Ronnie Tjampitjinpa (Lots 9, 53, 76) and Willie Tjapanangka (Lot 27) but also in the majority of paintings presented in this auction. This legacy reveals itself through shared stylistic elements, the continued use of traditional materials and techniques, and, finally, in the frameworks through which these paintings are now understood and appreciated.

LOT 26 | WILLY TJUNGURRAYI (c.1936 - 2018)

KIRITJINYA, TINGARI YOUNG MEN STORY, 1976

60.5 x 45.5 cm; 70 x 55 cm (framed)

acrylic on canvas board

$9,000 - $11,000

PROVENANCE

Papunya Tula Artists, NT Cat No. WJ761071

Private Collection, Vic

Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Papunya Tula Artists

Bears inscription verso: Willy Tjungurrayi, KirKirity Kurudji, Tingari (young man) story, WJ761071, 15/14/ONII/5

When reflecting on this period, it is important to recognise that many of the artists had once lived traditional, nomadic lives—disrupted by the brutal assimilation policies imposed by the coloniser. The Papunya settlement, established in 1959, was a direct outcome of this policy. People from diverse language groups, including Luritja, Pintupi, Anmatyerr, Warlpiri, and Western Aranda, were forcibly removed from their sacred lands and gathered into the settlement. By many accounts, Papunya was marked by a collective feeling of deep loss and depression,

its inhabitants severed from the cultural and spiritual landscapes that had sustained them for generations.

By 1970, a vast generational divide grew between the elders, whose lives were shaped by a reality that no longer existed, and a younger generation that had lived the majority of their life in the Papunya settlement without having

experienced the traditional nomadic way of life. In response to this cultural rupture, a number of senior men (soon to become the painting group) painted a series of murals on the Papunya school walls. These aimed to transmit cultural knowledge and reconnect younger generations with their heritage. The most significant of these was the Honey Ant Dreaming mural, a story shared by the various language groups residing in the settlement. From this moment, the artists transitioned from wall paintings to boards, developing a visual language through which

ancestral stories could be preserved and passed on.

LOT 27 | WILLIE TJAPANANGKA (1938 - 1979)

EMU DREAMING STORY, 1977

40.5 x 30.5 cm; 46 x 36 cm (framed)

acrylic on canvas board

$6,000 - $8,000

PROVENANCE

Papunya Tula Artists, NT Cat No. WB77804

Private collection, Vic

Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Papunya Tula Artists

Bears inscription verso: Willie Jabanunka, 15/25/WOII/5, 77804

Geoffrey Bardon quickly developed close relationships with the ‘painting men’. Through an open and respectful exchange, over time, he came to learn many elements of the stories they painted and the symbolic structures that underpinned them. This knowledge contributed to the creation of a foundational visual lexicon that remains profoundly relevant today. Many of the early paintings were accompanied by handwritten notes and diagrams, sometimes attached to the reverse of the artworks, providing insight into the complex meanings embedded within the imagery.

By the 1980s, with Andrew Crocker taking the helm of the company in 1979, the highly annotated and didactic methods of description used by Papunya Tula Artists up to that point gave way to the more abstracted language of the wider fine art world. This new approach often cast a vague mystical sheen over the art form rather than disseminating its individual symbolic elements. Vivienne Johnson described the move as a “revolutionary shift away from the […]previous emphasis on the cultural significance of the paintings […] Crocker’s flamboyant

style and this promotional strategy were effective in attracting the art world’s attention to works that had previously been thought of only in the context of ethnographic museums.” ¹

LOT 13 | OLD WALTER TJAMPITJINPA (c.1910 - 1981)

WOMEN AND SNAKES, 1973

43.5 x 23cm; 52 x 30.5 cm (framed)

synthetic polymer paint on composition board

$20,000 - $30,000

PROVENANCE

Painted at Papunya, NT in 1973

Papunya Tula Artists, NT Cat No. 735705

Private collection, NSW

Sotheby’s, Important Aboriginal Art, Melbourne, Vic, June 1999, Lot No. 311

Private collection, WA

Thence by descent

The Jory Family Collection, Qld

Bears annotated diagram verso (right)

In a statement prepared for display at Papunya Tula exhibitions, Crocker wrote: “Much could be said about the genesis of the Western Desert School and also of its role in the artists’ society. I think that for the purposes of this exhibition the paintings should be allowed to exercise their own aesthetic appeal and that explanations of content and symbolism be best kept to a minimum.”

This auction presents an outstanding selection of early boards, all created by founding artists of Papunya’s art movement. Included are three exceptional early boards by Old Walter Tjampitjinpa, who was one of Geoffrey Bardon’s closest friends and confidants among the painting men. Tjampitjinpa played a pivotal role in shaping Bardon’s understanding of the emerging visual language, and his paintings remain central to the history of the movement.

LOT 12 | OLD WALTER TJAMPITJINPA (c.1910 - 1981)

WATER STORY, 1972

46 x 31 cm (irregular); 68 x 53 cm (framed)

synthetic polymer powder paint on

composition board

$50,000 - $70,000

PROVENANCE

Painted at Papunya, NT in 1972

Stuart Art Centre, Alice Springs, NT Cat No. 12001

Private collection, New York, USA

Sotheby’s, Aboriginal Art, Melbourne, Vic, July 2004, Lot No. 409

Private collection, WA

Thence by descent

The Jory Family Collection, Qld

Adhered verso: a certificate of authenticity from Stuart Art Centre with an annotated diagram

ILLUSTRATED

Geoffrey Bardon and James Bardon, Papunya: A Place Made after the Story (Miegunyah Press, 2004), p.187 (right)

Old Walter was something of a gentle and kind patron in my gradually improving understanding of the Aboriginal way of life. Later he told me that he was the custodian of the Water Dreaming and his many variations on this theme afforded me knowledge of ceremonial sites and special places […] 2

Both Lot 12 (Water Story, 1972) and Lot 15 (Water Story, 1972) are stunning examples of the classic Water Dreaming. Stylistically, the key distinction between these two works lies in their approach to colour and composition. While Lot 12 is rich with dense, high-contrast dot work in vivid colours, Lot 15 adopts a more

restrained palette, with finely dotted elements throughout, resulting in a minimal and more subtle composition.

[…] it was for Old Walter, because of his kindliness, that I felt a strong affection. He spoke in a garbled and very brief and humble manner, repeating in his paintings the simple, classic Water Man and running water images, quietly, yet with a marvellous concentration. His painting was an expression of his eternal and universal response to phenomena such as the desert storms at Kalipimpinpa.3

LOT 15 | OLD WALTER TJAMPITJINPA (c.1910 - 1981)

UNTITLED (WATER DREAMING), 1972

61 x 40.5 cm (irregular); 72 x 51 cm (framed)

synthetic polymer powder paint on composition board

$50,000 - $70,000

PROVENANCE

Painted at Papunya, NT in 1972

Stuart Art Centre, NT Cat No. 19218

Private collection, SA

Sotheby’s, Important Aboriginal Art, Melbourne, Vic, June 1999, Lot No. 192

Private collection, WA

Thence by descent

The Jory Family Collection, Qld

Bears inscription verso: ‘19218’

Also featured is a remarkable 1973 board by Anatjari No. III Tjakamarra (Lot 14), who was a foundational figure in the movement’s emergence, renowned for his meticulous technique and refined aesthetic. As Bardon observed, Anatjari worked with great care, employing fine sable brushes to achieve a crystalline precision in his paintings. His compositions were, rich in decorative cross hatching and dotting, intricate ceremonial designs transposed onto canvas and board, all the while drawing from the traditions of sand painting and body decoration.

LOT 14 | ANATJARI No. III TJAKAMARRA (c.1938 - 1992)

ORIGINS OF SOAKAGES, 1973

92 x 22.5 cm; 101 x 31.5 cm (framed)

synthetic polymer paint on composition board

$30,000 - $40,000

PROVENANCE

Painted at Papunya, NT in 1973

Papunya Tula Artists, NT Cat No. A730808

Private collection, Vic

Sotheby’s, Fine Australian, Aboriginal and International Paintings, Melbourne, Vic, November 1999, Lot No. 478

Private collection, Vic

Sotheby’s, Aboriginal Art, Melbourne, Vic, July 2004, Lot No. 410

Private collection, WA

Thence by descent

The Jory Family Collection, Qld

Adhered verso: a certificate of authenticity from Papunya Tula Artists with annotated diagram

Finally, Long Jack Philippus Tjakamarra’s Water Dreaming (Lot 16), painted in 1971, the very first year of the Papunya painting movement and part of the fourth consignment of paintings is perhaps the highlight of the collection. This highly significant and beautiful board is illustrated in Geoffrey Bardon’s seminal book, Papunya - A Place Made after the Story (p.171) and is explicitly referred to in Bardon’s profile of the artist in the beginning of the book. Tjakamarra was an essential member of the original painting group, advising and assisting with the creation of the murals that ignited the movement, he painted on the walls of the school where Geoffrey Bardon taught. “He [Tjakamarra] represented the goodness and givingness always within the Aboriginal people.”4

Samuel Sterneborg, 2025

LOT 16 | LONG JACK PHILIPPUS TJAKAMARRA (1932 - 2020)

WATER DREAMING, 1971

44.5 x 22.5 cm; 67.5x 44.5 cm (framed)

synthetic polymer powder paint on composition board

$50,000 - $70,000

PROVENANCE

Painted at Papunya, NT in November/December 1971

Stuart Art Centre, Alice Springs, NT Cat No. SAC 4 1 (Consignment 4, painting 1)

Private collection, NSW

Sotheby’s, Important Aboriginal Art, Melbourne, Vic, June 2002, Lot No. 166

Private collection, WA

Thence by descent

The Jory Family Collection, Qld

Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity with annotated diagram and two letters from Geoffrey Bardon

Bears inscription verso: Cat No. SAC 4 1; 3” T+S; 3 1/2 B: NAT

ILLUSTRATED

Geoffrey Bardon and James Bardon, Papunya: A Place Made after the Story (Miegunyah Press, 2004), p.171 (left)

The elemental forms of line, dot and circle show the Water Dreaming: the line represents running water, the dotting the rain and the circles waterholes in the landscape. The traditional ‘U’ form is the Ceremonial Water Man invoking the rain.

The simplicity of the design is of the earliest style used at Papunya during my time and is not unlike its sand mosaic and body paint origins. - Geoffrey Bardon

¹ Vivienne Johnson’s essay in Genesis and Genius, p.192

² Geoffrey Bardon, Papunya Tula - Art of the Western Desert, 1991, p.28-29

³ Geoffrey Bardon, Papunya - A Place Made after a Story, 2004, p.74

4 Geoffrey Bardon, Papunya - A Place Made after a Story, 2004, p.84

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