DHUWARRWARR MARIKA - YALAÅ‹BARA - LARRAKITJI (HOLLOW LOG)

 DHUWARRWARR MARIKA
YALAÅ‹BARA - LARRAKITJI (HOLLOW LOG),  2020
219 x 20
Natural Earth Pigments on Carved Wood
 
PROVENANCE
Yirrkala NE Arnhem Land, NT
Buku Larrngay Arts, NTCooee Art, NSW 
 
STORY
The design contains the identity of the coastal place of YalaÅ‹bara ā€“ some of the finest sand dunes in the Northern Territory towering above a windswept oceanic beach near the junction of the Arafura Sea and the Gulf of Carpentaria. Itā€™s an important place for the YolÅ‹u people, especially the Dhuwa moiety, as itā€™s the landing site of the DjaÅ‹ā€™kawu ā€“ the major creator beings for everything associated with the Dhuwa.Arriving at sunrise, the Sisters prepare for the first birth, a self-fertilised act of creation. Their white hair, Djawulu, is symbolic of sacred wisdom. Mawalan is the name given to the sacred staff the Sisters use to create springs and rocks and other features in their later journeys through the land of other Dhuwa clans. The design shows saltwater drying on their skin, the sand slipping down as the Sisters mount the dunes. The sun has risen on the birth of a nation: the RirratjiÅ‹u clan.    Dhuwarrwarr Marika, 2020