CLIFFORD POSSUM TJAPALTJARRI - ROCK WALLABY & POSSUM DREAMING
CLIFFORD POSSUM TJAPALTJARRI
NAPPERBY DREAMING, 1996
82 x 152 cm
synthetic polymer paint on Belgian linen
REGION
Western Desert, NT
PROVENANCE
Commissioned by Des Rogers, Vic Cat No. DRSN204
Aboriginal Arts Australia, Alice Springs, NT
Private Collection, Vic
Lawson-Menzies, Sydney, NSW, May 2005, Lot No. 81
Menzies Estate Collection, Vic
Cooee Art Leven, NSW
STORY
Clifford Possum's unique artistic style is characterised by an innovative use of spatial configuration. Small early career works were a mere foretaste of the grandeur of the paintings he was to create, on an unprecedentedly massive scale, in the late 1970s. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s he continued to compile a powerful body of work which was most notable for its brilliant manipulation of three-dimensional space and the introduction of western iconography and figurative imagery, which stood out from a background of highly descriptive dotting in order to convey certain elements in his narratives. This played a dual role in making them both more intelligible to western audiences, as well as allowing him to create imaginative compositions within the parameters of the 'law'.
Clifford was amongst the first Western Desert artists to forsake their association with Papunya Tula almost entirely by the mid 1980s to become an independent artist. At this time, he returned to his Anmatjerre homeland at Mount Allan and began selling his works directly to the government marketing company, Aboriginal Arts Australia, in Alice Springs.
The Dreaming stories depicted in this magnificent work include Mala (Rock Wallaby) associated with Marrunga west of Mount Wedge and its travels south west to Ayres Rock and Pitjantjatjarra country. The concentric circles are their campsites. These two old men were of the Tiangala kinship group and whilst at this site they led young initiates through part of the law. The travels of Tjukunypa, the Possum ancestors, both on top of and underneath the ground, in and about the area known as Tuirri on nearby Napperby Station, is also included. The undulating lines are the tracks of the possum's tails, which are flanked by their characteristic, paw marks. Dingo Dreaming also passes through this country.
ARTIST PROFILE
