ANGELINA PWERLE NGAL | FIRST NATIONS FINE ART AUCTION | JUNE 2025

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Dec 6, 2024
3 min read

Updated: May 17

"My Bush Plum paintings represent the whole thing: all of Country.”

Born sometime between 1939 and 1947 (records are uncertain), Angelina Ngal (Ngale, Kngale), also known as Angelina Pwerle 1, is one of the most celebrated artists from the Utopia region in central ‘Australia’. A senior Anmatyerr woman who continues to create highly intricate, minimalist artworks.

Ngal and Pwerle are not last names in the Western sense of a shared family name, but skin-names referring to her kinship relationships. Utopia sits on the language boundary between Anmatyerr and Alyawarr, In Alyawarr country, Angelina is referred to as Pwerle, and in Anmatyerr country, she is referred to as Ngal. When asked about the difference between the two skin names, Angelina told author Chrischona Schmidt: “Pwerle is the same as Ngale, just in another language.” 2 Interestingly, the artist speaks only Anmatyerr and would therefore likely refer to herself as Ngal, while some institutions, including New York’s MoMa prefer the use of Pwerle. Angelina was married to Louie Pwerle, who was an artist in his own right, the elder brother of Cowboy Louie Pwerle.

The artist’s creative journey began in 1977, producing batiks under the instruction of Yipati, a Pitjantjatjara artist from Ernabella and Suzie Bryce, a craft instructor. Then later through the Utopia Women’s Batik Group alongside her sisters, Kathleen and Polly Ngal. During the pivotal 1988–1989 CAAMA Summer Project, she transitioned to acrylic painting, transferring her refined batik-making skills onto canvas. Her first paintings were included in the groundbreaking Utopia Women’s Art exhibition in Alice Springs in 1990, marking her entry into the broader art world.

Angelina’s art is rooted in her grandfather’s Country, Aharlper, and centres on Anwekety (Bush Plum Dreaming), a subject of profound cultural, social, and ceremonial significance. “I paint anwekety – bush plum. Little flowers ... after the rain and seeds. That’s my country, Ahalper.” 3 Her paintings convey themes of nourishment—

both physical and spiritual—and celebrate the interconnectedness of land, knowledge, and memory. Early paintings feature clusters of red dots symbolising the Bush Plum, surrounded by layers of meticulously rendered

coloured dots. Over time, her style evolved into finely detailed, abstract compositions that hint at sacred landmarks, ceremonial activities, and the ephemeral beauty of the landscape.

Despite her steady rise in international prominence, Angelina Ngal’s recognition in ‘Australia’ has been comparatively slow. Her work has featured in prestigious exhibitions such as Marking the Infinite: Contemporary Women Artists from Aboriginal Australia (USA and Canada, 2016-2019), Know My Name: Australian Women Artists 1900 to Now at the National Gallery of Australia, and The Shape of Time: Art and Ancestors of Oceania at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which toured internationally as well as being showcased at Art Basel Miami in 2021. Her paintings are held in major public and private collections worldwide, including the National Museum of Art in Osaka, Japan, and The Debra and Dennis Scholl Collection in Miami, USA.

What sets Ngal apart from her contemporaries is her exceptional ability to capture the essence of her Country and Altyerr, a skill particularly evident in her intricate dot paintings that vividly evoke Ahalper and Anwekety. According to the artist herself, “This is a constant engagement. This is a spiritual connection to place [...] My Bush Plum paintings represent the whole thing: all of Country.”4

As noted in the Financial Times, she is an insider’s secret, “If [Emily] Kngwarreye is the A-lister and [Daniel] Walbidi is the rising star, then Angelina Pwerle is the cult favourite – one on whom a growing number of institutions and collectors are quietly placing bets.”5

Mirri Leven, 2025