LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA
LILY KARADADA
WANDJINA, 1990
90 x 60 cm
natural earth pigments on linen
REGION
Kimberley, WA
PROVENANCE
Narrangunny Art Traders, W.A
STORY
It is said that the Wandjina spirit figure is the embodiment of the rain spirit and ancestor of the Wonnambal, Ngarinyin and Worrora peoples of the North West Kimberley. Wandjina figures are seen decorating the walls of caves in the plateau areas along the North Kimberley coast and are unique to this region. They are always pictured, using red ochre, from a frontal aspect, with no mouths, large black eyes and a slit or beak like nose. They are usually depicted in a veil of dots which represent the blood and water mix of man and animal. Dreamtime mythology has it that the Wandjina emerged from the clouds and will return in that form. Other versions suggest that Dumbi the owl is the model which is why it is prominent in some of the stories.
EXHIBITED
Lily Karadada - The last of the great Wandjina painters, April 2011, Cooee Art Leven, NSW
ARTIST PROFILE
