MingelmanganuAlec Alec Mingelmanganu Alec Mingelmanganu 1905 - 1981 Alex, Mijelmarngu, Mintjilmanganu Alec Mingelmanganu lived at the former Benedictine Mission at Kalumbaru and became one of a select group that began painting there in the mid-1970s. Anthropologist Kim Ackerman first noticed his work during a visit to Kalumburu in 1974/75, when he discovered a discarded Wandjina painting formerly used during ceremony. It was later shown during the 1975 Derby Boab Week Art Show under the title ‘Australian Gothic’ (Sotheby’s catalogue entry November 1997). During the late 1970s, Mary Macha, who ran the Government-backed Aboriginal Traditional Arts outlet in Perth, developed a friendship with Ackerman, whom she from time to time would seek advice from. The first Wandjina paintings on bark had been produced for anthropologists as early as the 1930s. In 1979 Mary Macha received funding from the Education Department to conduct workshops aimed at investigating whether traditional ochres could be used on canvas, as an alternative to bark. The resulting works were the first to be produced in the region on canvas. Inadvertently, Mingelmanganu’s participation drew immediate attention to his genius, for his 'first canvas was outstanding' (Macha cited in Ryan 1993: 17). A solo show was held in September of the following year at the government marketing company’s Aboriginal Traditional Arts in Perth. The celebrated canvases produced for this exhibition are considered amongst the finest depictions of Wandjina that have ever been produced for sale. The majority of these works are now in major state galleries, including two in the National Gallery of Australia, one in the National Gallery of Victoria and one in The Berndt Museum of Anthropology, Perth. Mingelmanganu’s images of Wandjina with pointed shoulders mimicked the depictions of Wandjina that he had seen on a trip to Lawley River with anthropologist Ian Crawford the year before. In fact, it was Mingelmanganu’s desire to replicate the life-size of Wandjina cave paintings that influenced him to ask to work on canvases of a similar size to artists Robert Juniper and Vaclav Macha's, which he had seen in Perth at the time of his solo show there. This prompted four masterpieces in the last years of Mingelmanganu life, three of which hung, for many years, in the foyer of Lord McAlpine’s Australia Bank building in Perth. Mingelmanganu’s motivation to perpetuate the power of the Wandjina through his art was not dissimilar to the way in which regular restorations of rock paintings were motivated by a desire to continue cultural practices and religious beliefs. Restoring rock paintings of Wandjina is an integral responsibility for many Kimberley tribes, including the Woonambal, to whom Alec Mingelmanganu belonged. The Wandjina, spirits who preside over the rains and the unborn spirits of children, were found predominantly on the walls of caves, where they are said to have transformed into paintings upon their death. Thus the Aboriginal custodians believed that they did not create the Wandjina paintings, but inherited them from the spirits who first made them. Not all Wandjina look alike. Each clan was responsible for only a single Wandjina and it was said that there were 'so many of them that almost the whole Kimberley is crisscrossed by their paths' (Crawford 1968: 31). Mingelmanganu’s Wandjina are highly distinctive and unique in proportion, composition and tonal quality. In a number of his largest works, the full-length figure of a Wandjina is decorated in lines of dots similar to body painting designs, intended to give a visual brightness which expresses the spiritual essence of the ancestral beings. Alec Minglemanganu is considered the greatest of all artists to have rendered this ancient spirit-being in modern media. His paintings have become the most loved and highly collectable of all of these iconic creator spirit depictions. Alec Mingelmanganu’s earliest works were made for ceremonies and usually discarded after use. As such it is highly unlikely that the ochres on these early works, if even available for sale, would be stable enough to make these highly desirable as collectable works of art. However, he did produce small works for sale on canvas, boards, engraved wood and on bark that were sold through Aboriginal Traditional Arts in the late 1970s. These works are either in public galleries, or the owners do not wish to part with them as very few have come onto the market. Only 30 of his works have come up for sale. Nine of these works did not sell, each for different reasons. One bore an estimate of $250,000-350,000 in Sotheby’s July 2005 sale. This was the largest estimate ever placed on one of his works by more than $100,000. Another, offered at Sotheby’s in July 2001 lacked the charm of other comparable works. Another was a very different story indeed. First offered through Lawson~Menzies in their November 2006 sale (Lot 9), this unusual bark painting had been discovered in the Perth home of a doctor who had worked for several decades amongst the Aboriginal people of the Kimberley. Having been authenticated as a work by Minglemanganu it sold for $38,400. No doubt sensing an opportunity to pull the rug from under their competitor’s feet, Sotheby’s offered the buyer the opportunity to re-offer the work just eight months later with an estimate of $80,000-120,000 (Lot 31). It proved too much to resist and the bark sold for $102,000, a hefty 265% increase in value less commission. One can only guess the circumstances that induced the new owner to offer the work through Sotheby’s once more in October 2008 (Lot 51) carrying an estimate of $90,000-120,000. In any event, by then the market peak had collapsed and it failed to sell. Similarly, the artist's record-setting work Wandjina c1980 which sold in 2002 was reoffered in 2010 with estimates commensurate with its previous sale price of $244,500. The work failed to attract a buyer, despite another Wandjina work selling in the same year for the not insignificant sum of $84,000. Mingelmanganu began painting on canvas in 1979, producing works for his solo show in Perth in 1980, and tragically died the following year. The majority of these exhibition works are in state galleries, leaving few in the public domain. His Wandjinas are usually striking with iconic power and, being rare, generally provoke spirited bidding on those few occasions when they come up for sale at auction. His highest price is $244,500, which was paid for a 118 x 90 cm, 1980 canvas. This was double the high estimate in Sotheby’s June 2002 sale. The sale remains the record price paid for a Wandjina painting on the secondary market and sets Mingelmanganu as the most desirable artist working in this style. The following year, Sotheby’s sold a slightly smaller canvas from the same period, within its estimate achieving the second-highest price of $175,500 for one of his works at that time. This price was, however, transcended when Sotheby's sold a Wandjina on bark from the collection of Dutch supermarket owner Thomas Vroom in London in 2015. Measuring 123 x 48 cm, and estimated at GBP20,000-30,000, the work achieved GBP93,750 or $187,069. Though other artists such as Charlie Numbulmoore fetch increasingly high prices, Mingelmanganu is unique in that, other than the Vroom bark, his most prized pieces were created on canvas. The scale that this medium allows adds certain potency to his images, recreating the vibrancy Wandjina images hold when painted in their original environment; grand scale paintings on the walls of caves in the Kimberley. Another Mingelmanganu bark painting sold for $38,400 in 2006 and Sotheby's achieved a price of GBP62,500 ($AUD110,769) for a bark in 2018. It was for a time really canvas works that represented a 'firmly established blue-chip investment' Dedman 2006: 454), and, being rare, these remain difficult to obtain. Nevertheless, a small iconic work on canvas (50x39cm) from the estate of Lady Mary Nolan failed to sell when offered by Bonhams with a presale estimate of $40,000 - $60,000 in November 2017, later selling in June 2018 for $30,500 with a lowered expectation of $25,000 - $35,000. Conversely in 2019, Cooee Art MarketPlace sold an excellent example of a Mingelmanganu bark for $96,000 against an estimate of $60,000 - $80,000. Minglemanganu is one artist whose works are highly desired but extremely rare and very few owners are willing to part with their prized works. Expect any work that makes it to the secondary market to garner major attention. Explore our artworks See some of our featured artworks below ANGELINA PWERLE NGAL - UNTITLED ( BUSH RAISIN MAN) Price AU$3,000.00 ALISON (JOJO) PURUNTATAMERI - WINGA (TIDAL MOVEMENT/WAVES) Out of stock LILY YIRDINGALI JURRAH HARGRAVES NUNGARRAYI - KURLURRNGALINYPA JUKURRPA Price From AU$13,500.00 BRONWYN BANCROFT - UNTITLED Out of stock JOSHUA BONSON - SKIN: A CELEBRATION OF CULTURE Price AU$8,500.00 BOOK - KONSTANTINA - GADIGAL NGURA Price From AU$99.00 FREDDIE TIMMS - MOONLIGHT VALLEY Price AU$35,000.00 NEIL ERNEST TOMKINS - BURN THERE, DON'T BURN THERE Price AU$7,000.00 SHOP NOW

Discover the perfect gift for art enthusiasts at Art Leven's Gift Card page. Give the joy of choice with our art gallery's curated selection of artworks. Whether it's a birthday, anniversary, or special occasion, let them explore and select their own unique masterpiece. eGift Card A$100 You can't go wrong with a gift card. Choose an amount and write a personalised message to make this gift your own. With paintings, sculpture and fine art prints by hundreds of artists to chose from. Amount A$100 A$150 A$250 A$350 A$500 Other amount Quantity Buy Now

HERMANNSBURG - THEN AND NOW From 09 October to 23 October 2021 HERMANNSBURG - THEN AND NOW From 09 October to 23 October 2021 HERMANNSBURG - THEN AND NOW From 09 October to 23 October 2021

Artist Profile for Angelina George < Back Angelina George Angelina George 1937 - 2014 ARTIST PROFILE ARTIST CV MARKET ANALYSIS Angelina was born about 5 miles from Nut Wood Downs Station on 25 November 1937. Angelina's mother worked at the Roper River Mission, sewing clothes for the children, including her own five daughters, the Joshua Sisters (all since married); Dinah Garadji, Gertrude Huddleston, Eva Rogers, Betty Roberts and the youngest Angelina George. READ FULL ARTIST PROFILE ANGELINA GEORGE - NEAR RUINED CITY SOLD AU$16,000.00 ANGELINA GEORGE - HIDING PLACES SOLD AU$100.00 top Anchor 1 PROFILE Angelina George 1937 - 2014 Angelina was born about 5 miles from Nut Wood Downs Station on 25 November 1937. Angelina's mother worked at the Roper River Mission, sewing clothes for the children, including her own five daughters, the Joshua Sisters (all since married); Dinah Garadji, Gertrude Huddleston, Eva Rogers, Betty Roberts and the youngest Angelina George. Angelina and her sisters attended mission school (Mr. Palmer and Mr. Lesky - from the Anglican Church) and worked in the Mission Gardens, although Angelina tried to avoid it as much as possible. Eva Rogers was a schoolteacher too and Dinah Garadji helped in school and the gardens. "I was the naughtiest girl! I used to run down to the river when I should be at school, and go fishing with the old people. One time they saw me and started paddling away in a canoe. I sung out to them to "stop!" but they kept going, so I jumped in and swam after them. Not many crocodiles then like now." Angelina is the youngest of the Joshua sisters. Her work often features moody, undulating landscapes of rivers and hills, or bright bold bush flowers and birds. Angelina enjoys painting and spending time with her grandchildren. Angelina's people are called Ngyameratjara, fresh water people, and one of her favorite things is to go fishing in the rivers and billabongs, especially Yellow Waters Billabong, or Boomerang Lagoon - both featured in many of her paintings. "In the mission days we planted short beans, green beans, pawpaw, bananas, cabbage, rock melon, carrot and beetroot...big bean garden down the riverside...irrigation was put in with a pump water ran through the trench... peanuts had another farm. After gardening helped little bit in the school kitchen work in the kitchen real early set yeast every night for making bread: Miss Rendall was the cook. (She died now in Sydney or Melbourne)" Angelina is a contemporary artist whose paintings are explorations of the landscape: reflecting and imagining the space and structure of the country. The distinctive feature of her work is her attention to detail in capturing moody, undulating aerial perspectives of place. Dry creek beds, burnt trees, sandy river systems, swollen billabongs, sweeping birds, veins of fresh flora on the rocks, walking tracks and camp sites give evidence to the intimate relationship Angelina enjoys with her past and her land. These journeys are magnified in bright bold paintings of layered bush flowers and birds. Angelina enjoys painting and is producing works that are the result of patience, a serious interest in her own profile and increasing confidence in her own unique style. ARTIST CV Selected Collections: Karen Brown Collection McAlpine Collection Laverty Collection National Gallery of Victoria Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory Kerry Stokes Collection Lisa Paulsen Collection Awards: 2011 Finalist, WA Indigenous Art Award, AGWA Perth 2009 TOGA Art Award, Darwin 2008 Highly Commended, Telstra NATSIAA, MAGNT Darwin 2007 Winner, General Painting Prize, Telstra NATSIAA, MAGNT Darwin Publications: 2009 The Australian, Nicholas Rothwell, Renaissance on the Roper 2009 Colour Country, Art From Roper River, Cath Bowdler 2008 The Australian, Nicolas Rothwell, Call of the Wider Sunshine 2007 Australian Gourmet Traveller, March Edition 2006 Art and Australia Magazine, Anita Angel 2006 The Weekend Australian, My Imagined Country, Nicolas Rothwell, February 17th 1991 Ngukurr, Anthony Knight Solo Exhibitions: 2010 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Hiding Places 2009 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Burrunji Country 2008 Randall Lane Fine Art, Perth WA Dry Season Long Time 2008 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Far Away Places - August 2007 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Near Ruined City 2006 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT My Imagined Country, February 2000 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Solo Exhibition Angelina George 1999 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Recent Works - Angelina George 1996 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Angelina George 1996 Shades of Ochre, Darwin NT Solo Exhibition Angelina George Group Exhibitions: 2010 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Retrospective - December 2010 2010 Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne VIC Hiding Places Melbourne Art Fair - August 2010 2010 Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award 2009 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Rising Stars Modern Classics - August 2008 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Joshua Sisters 2008 Melbourne Art Fair, Melbourne Vic 2008 Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award 2008 Noosa Long Weekend, Noosa QLD My Country Two - June 2007 Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award Winner Open Painting Prize 2007 Viviene Anderson Gallery, Melbourne Vic Women's Show 2007 Art Sydney, Sydney NSW 2006 Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award 2006 Noosa Long Weekend, Noosa QLD My Country - June 2004 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Angelina George and Betty Roberts 2001 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Group Show - Joshua Sisters 2000 Melbourne Art Fair 2000 Karen Brown Gallery 2000 Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory 17th Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award 1999 Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory 16th Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award 1998 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Recent works - Joshua Sister's Dinah Garadji, Gertie Huddleston, Betty Roberts, Eva Rogers and Angelina George 1997 Karen Brown Gallery, Darwin NT Recent works - Joshua Sister's Dinah Garadji, Gertie Huddleston, Betty Roberts, Eva Rogers and Angelina George 1995 Chapman Gallery, Canberra Group Exhibition 1995 Shades of Ochre, Darwin NT Joshua Sister's Exhibition 1994 Shades of Ochre, Darwin NT Workshops - Joshua Sister's Dinah Garadji, Gertie Huddleston, Betty Roberts, Eva Rogers and Angelina George Market Analysis MARKET ANALYSIS Angelina George is yet to record the 20 auction records that will prevent her AIAM100 rating being discounted by a factor (access About AIAM100 from home page).In fact, prior to 2012, her works had only appeared 9 times at auction and only 5 of these had sold. In fact her highest price was just $2,160. In 2012 Mossgreen held the sale of the Ross and Rona Clarke collection which included 6 works by this artist. The Clarke's were devotees of Karen Brown Gallery in Darwin which represented Angelina as well as Regina Wilson (who had 4 works enter her top ten results in 2012 as a consiquence). Only one of Angelina's paintings failed to sell in this sale amongst the six on offer. In fact, the five works that did sell became her 5 highest results to date at public sale. Her new record was set by two works, Limmen Gorge , 2006, and My Imagined Country , 2005, which both achieved $17,080 against presale estimates of $12,000 - $15,000. Further sales were recorded at $11,590, $9,760 and $9,150 giving her an average price for the year of $12,932 and an 83% success rate. In spite of the fact that Angelina George is yet to be listed in the top 200 artists, she was the 27th best-performing artist in 2012. Her works have performed well in the primary market. Angelina creates strong and highly desirable works of art. She has had no less than 10 solo exhibitions,and been included in dozens of group shows through her primary agent. In 2007 she won the General Painting Prize, at the Telstra NATSIAA Art Awards. She won the highly prestigious TOGA Art Award in 2009 and was a finalist, in the WA Indigenous Art Award, in 2011. With a cultural cache of this standing, once Angelina's auction records exceed the 20-work threshold, she is set to have a far stronger presence in the list of the most important artists of the movement. Disclaimer: At Cooee Art Leven, we strive to maintain accurate and respectful artist profiles. Despite our efforts, there may be occasional inaccuracies. We welcome any corrections or suggested amendments. Please contact us with your feedback .

A COOEE CHRISTMAS | ADVENT CALENDAR From 27 November to 24 December 2021 A COOEE CHRISTMAS | ADVENT CALENDAR From 27 November to 24 December 2021 A COOEE CHRISTMAS | ADVENT CALENDAR From 27 November to 24 December 2021 Few things are as exciting as the lead-up to Christmas. Throughout December, much of the world counts down (or rather up) to the 25th, when stockings have been stuffed and the red and green wrapping paper is rolled up and stashed in the most remote corner of your cupboard........ This year, by popular demand, we are bringing back A Cooee Christmas – our enormously fun recurring exhibition of small, affordable, and most importantly, beautiful paintings. Only this time, the event comes in the form of an advent calendar! 25 timber-framed canvas board paintings by artists from communities such as Warnayaka Art Centre in Lajamanu, Warlukurlangu Artists in Yuendumu, Ngaruwanajirri on Bathurst Island North of Darwin, and Bula Bula Arts in Ramingining Central Arnhem Land are included in the calendar. Each purchase of a gorgeous painting supports the art world, communities, and the artists themselves. Here are the rules: Collectors and gift-givers choose blindly – only on the corresponding day is the artwork revealed. If you choose a gift for yourself or a loved one, we will make sure a hardcopy and/or digital card revealing your/their present will reach you in time for Christmas. All artworks will be available for collection from our Redfern Gallery or posted after Boxing Day* Buyers can pick as many as they like, so be quick and choose yourself and/or a loved one a wonderful Christmas surprise! *please refer to our holiday hours for collection availability

PultaraEvely Evelyn Pultara Evelyn Pultara 1940 Station, the cattle property adjoining Utopia Station and has now become a senior custodian for her Dreaming the bush yam. She began painting traditional bush tucker and awelye (women’s ceremonial body paint designs) in 1997 but went on to exclusively paint her plant totem, the bush yam. While rarely indicating any more than necessary about the context of her paintings their content is the pencil yam (atnwelarr) a slender twining plant with yellow pea flowers and edible tubers. This has been an abundant source of food for her Anmatyerr clansmen since the dawn of creation and it is her responsibility to pay homage to it through song and dance in ceremony - and now in art. Her Dreamings, related through haptic adventures in paint, relate the tales of the mythic totemic ancestors who made the land, its people, and its food. Through their telling and retelling and the depiction of their sites in art, these Dreamings provide a song-map that locates the water holes, ochre pits, food sources, and sacred sites of the artist’s country. It has been said that her paintings impart the rhythm of the yam corroborree enacted and retold for time in memoriam through song and dance. While Evelyn’s work has been exhibited since the late 1990’s her first solo exhibition was held at the World Vision Gallery in Sydney’s Leichardt. This was followed in quick succession by solo shows in Milan, Sydney and Melbourne. In 2005 she was won first prize in the General Painting section of the of the 22nd Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin. Given her relatively recent emergence as an artist of renown, a staggering 44 works have been offered at auction. With a relatively short career it is little wonder that her clearance rate at auction is relatively low at 55%. This should not put off collectors, however it is wise to be rigorous in selecting works of quality with good source provenance. Bonham’s and Goodman have taken up much of the running on Evelyn’s secondary market sales. Her record price at auction was achieved for a very large untitled work created in 2004 measuring 180 x 240 cm. Estimated at $8,000-10,000 in the Bonham’s & Goodman November 2005 Sydney sale (Lot No. 77) it sold just a tad above the high estimate at $10,200. Explore our artworks See some of our featured artworks below ANGELINA PWERLE NGAL - UNTITLED ( BUSH RAISIN MAN) Price AU$3,000.00 ALISON (JOJO) PURUNTATAMERI - WINGA (TIDAL MOVEMENT/WAVES) Out of stock LILY YIRDINGALI JURRAH HARGRAVES NUNGARRAYI - KURLURRNGALINYPA JUKURRPA Price From AU$13,500.00 BRONWYN BANCROFT - UNTITLED Out of stock JOSHUA BONSON - SKIN: A CELEBRATION OF CULTURE Price AU$8,500.00 BOOK - KONSTANTINA - GADIGAL NGURA Price From AU$99.00 FREDDIE TIMMS - MOONLIGHT VALLEY Price AU$35,000.00 NEIL ERNEST TOMKINS - BURN THERE, DON'T BURN THERE Price AU$7,000.00 SHOP NOW

New Works By | Stephen Brameld & Jay Staples Art Leven - 17 Thurlow St, Redfern, Gadigal / Sydney 3 - 26 April 2025 Viewing Room New Works By | Stephen Brameld & Jay Staples 3 - 26 April 2025 Art Leven - 17 Thurlow St, Redfern, Gadigal / Sydney 'New Works By' is a solo exhibition by Walyalup (Fremantle) artist duo Stephen Brameld and Jay Staples, recipients of the 2024 Art Leven award as part of the Paddington Art Prize. As self-taught artists practicing in painting, sculpture and video, Brameld and Staples simultaneously work on the same artwork until they reach a point of mutual recognition. Their work explores improvisation, shared consciousness, regeneration and mysticism through a rugged workshop-like approach to painting and sculpting, using a wide array of materials. PDF Catalogue RSVP Opening ART COLLECTOR ARTICLE STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - STUDIO CURTAINS price AU$12,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - PORK LOIN price AU$7,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - BLK 12OZ price AU$6,500.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - KICKING CANS Sold AU$6,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - WALTZ DOWN SLIP STREET price AU$8,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - NOIO Sold AU$7,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - FOOTBALL GUERNSEY price AU$6,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - PERFUME BOTTLE Sold AU$6,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - BLUE DOTS price AU$8,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - CHINATOWN HANDBAG price AU$7,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - PLATFORM ON THE OCEAN Sold AU$6,000.00 STEPHEN BRAMELD & JAY STAPLES - THE MOON, THE BOY AND THEIR SHADOW Sold AU$0.00 ExNewWorks

Artist Profile for Lily Karadada < Back Lily Karadada Lily Karadada ARTIST PROFILE ARTIST CV MARKET ANALYSIS READ FULL ARTIST PROFILE LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA SOLD AU$3,000.00 LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA - RAIN SPIRITS Sold AU$0.00 LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA -RAINMAKER / Sold AU$0.00 LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA Sold AU$0.00 LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA SOLD AU$1,800.00 LILY KARADADA - BLACK LIGHTNING WANDIJINA Sold AU$0.00 LILY KARADADA - WANDJINA Sold AU$0.00 top Anchor 1 PROFILE Lily Karadada Lily Karedada is a prolific and well-established Wandjina painter from the township of Kalumburu, on the northwest tip of Western Australia. This remote part of the Kimberley is sometimes referred to as ‘Wandjina Country’. The enigmatic Wandjina figures, painted and maintained for generations in the surrounding caves and rock galleries, have become emblematic of Dreamtime mystery. The much older but unrelated Bradshaw figures are also found in this area, as is the powerful Rainbow Serpent. For the local tribes, the Wandjina ancestor spirits were the pivot of their natural and cultural world. Each clan group traces its decent from a distinct cave area. Lily was born near the Prince Regent River and her bush name, Mindindil, means 'bubbles'. This name refers to the time when her father saw bubbles emerging in the freshwater spring and announced to his wife, “Ah, what this one here, he comes out bubble? Ah! Might be kid.” Many aeons ago (during the Dreamtime), after their creative acts were done, the Wandjina lay down in the caves, leaving their life giving essence in the cave paintings as they returned to their home in the clouds. They are known as rainmakers and bring fertility to the land. They are usually shown either in groups or surrounded by associated totemic species. Always depicted frontally, their large eyes dominate in a mouthless face, sometimes on top of a simple robe-like body, with no apparent limbs or feet. Radiating lines around the eyes or in a halo around the head represent the lightning that heralds the storm. The first lightning strike renders their mouths tightly closed. If their mouths were left open, we are told, it would rain incessantly, carrying everything away in an absolute torrent. Wandjina float vertically on the rock surface or may be shown lying down. They are precious ancient icons, and their contemporary re-representation has allowed for their preservation and the survival of a unique culture. The earliest copying of these images from rock to bark was at the request of early missionaries and explorers during the 1930s, after the Benedictine mission was established. The missionaries displaced Lily’s Wanambal people from their traditional lands. Their way of life, including the regular re-touching of the rock images and conveying of stories by tribal elders was forbidden. Lily still recalls how the hard work routines of their early mission life took all their time and energy. These days Kalumburu is Aboriginal-run and income is largely derived from art and craft production. The Karedada family have long been recognised as leaders in the Wandjina tradition. When Kimberley art first found its way to the market during the 1970s under the guidance Mary Macha, Lily and her husband Jack Karedada participated in the first exhibition in Perth. Bringing this unique tradition to public attention ensured its survival. The assimilation of sacred elements into the secular did not detract from its numinous character, or its ability to mesmerise an audience. Lily’s refined style, full of subtle variations in tone, her figures outlined and with the distinctive pointy shoulders of her particular cave area, often emerge from a veil of rain-like dots. They are accompanied by animal spirits, beautifully captured in uncluttered character. Lily’s totems are the turkey, possum and white cockatoo. She belongs to the Jirrengar owlet moiety and the Wandjina hold a special affinity with the owl. A sympathetic Wandjina spirit rescued the legendary owl, Dumbi, from a group of playful children who were pulling out its feathers. Though the Wandjina returned to the clouds, a close association remained between the two. Lily collects pigments and other natural art materials from the bush as well as using modern ones. She has incorporated the imagery of techniques such as mouth spray and hand stencil. Unlike most other contemporary Aboriginal art forms, historical precedents have determined the artistic features of this tradition, though an element of experimentation has always been present. Art and artefact production was a response to social change and dislocation from traditional culture and lands. Its continual evolution sustains the small community and provides guidance and inspiration to new generations. Profile author: Sophie Baka Collections Aboriginal Art Museum, The Netherlands Artbank, Sydney. Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. Berndt Museum of Anthropology, University of Western Australia. Christensen Collection, held Museum of Victoria, Melbourne. Flinders University Art Museum, Adelaide. Museum de Lyon, France. National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane. The Kelton Foundation, Santa Monica, U.S.A. Individual Exhibitions 2011 - Lily Karadada The Last of the Great Wandjina Painters, Cooee Art Gallery, Sydney. 2010 - Lily Karadeda, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne. 2000 - Lily Karadeda, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne. Group Exhibitions 2018 - Keepers of the Kimberley, Cooee Art Gallery, Sydney. 2016 - Cooee Art at Australian Galleries, Australian Galleries, Sydney. 2011 - Bark Paintings 1930-2000 - And New Works from Bula Bula , featuring Baluka Maymuru , Banguli , Barrngandi , Bomandi , Darringguwuy , David Gurrumirringu Malangi , Dick Barinbungung , Djawida Nadjongarle , Djawida Nadjongorle , Elizabeth Nyuguwana , George Ganyjibala , George Liwukang Bukulatjpi , George Milpurrurru , Jack Madagarlgarl , Jacky Atjarral , James Gaykamangu , James Iyuna , Jimmy and Elisabeth Wululu , Jimmy Moduk , Jimmy Njiminjuma , Jimmy Wululu , John Gurruwiwi Mandjuwi , Les Mirrikkurriya , Lily Karadada , Linda Namiyal Bopirri , Lofty Nabardayai Nadjamerrek , Mickey Ganambarr Daypurryun, Nabamdlule, Narrawu Wanambi, Paddy Compass Namatbara, Peter Marralwanga, Philip Gadthaykudthay , Philip Gudthaykudthay , Robyn Djunginy, Roy Burnyila, Thompson Yulidjirri, Tom Djimpurrpurr , Tom Djumburpur, Trudy Miltjuntjun , Wally Lipuwanga , Wally Mandarrk , William Wilanydjangu at Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Sydney. 2010 - Passing on tradition - new and old Kimberley, featuring Gordon Barney, Paddy Bedford, Jack Britten, Charlene Carrington, Tommy Carroll, Billy Duncan, Hector Jandanay, Lily Karedada, Rosie Karedada, Queenie McKenzie, Jock Mosquito, Beerbee Mungnari, Mark Nodea *, Nancy Nodea, Nancy Noonju, Peggy Patrick, Rusty Peters, Marcia Purdie, Shirley Purdie, Phyllis Thomas, Freddy Timms, Enry Wambiny @ Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Sydney. 2009 - Floating Life - Contemporary Aboriginal Fibre Art, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane. 2009 - Parcours des Mondes, Arts d’Australie, Stéphane Jacob, Paris, France; Dreamtime, Musée Les Abattoirs with Arts d’Australie, Stéphane Jacob, Toulouse, France. 2007 - Parcours des Mondes, Galerie Arts d'Australie, Stephane Jacob, Paris. 2006 - Christofle invite l’Australie, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / Musée Bouilhet Christofle, Saint Denis, France. 2005 - Kaos, Parcours des Mondes, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob, Paris, France; Terre de Rêves, Terre des Hommes, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / Musée de la Préhistoire d’Île de France, Nemours, France;Terre de Rêves, Terre des Hommes, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / Ambassade d’Australie, Paris, France. 2004 - EXPLAINED, A closer look at Aboriginal art, Aboriginal Art Museum, Utrecht, The Netherlands. 2000 - Exposition collective, Arts d’Australie, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / Espace Mezzo - Avenue des Champs-Elysées, Paris. 1999 - Exposition collective, Australie – Art, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / J.L. Amsler - Bastille, Paris. 1997 - Exposition collective, L’Art des Aborigènes d’Australie, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / Galerie de Stassart, Bruxelles; Exposition collective, L’Art des Aborigènes d’Australie, Arts d'Australie, Stéphane Jacob / Espace Paul Riquet, Béziers. 1994 - Power of the Land, Masterpieces of Aboriginal Art, National Gallery of Victoria. 1993 - Images of Power, Aboriginal Art of the Kimberley, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. 1992 - Broome Fringe Festival, Broome. 1991 - Aboriginal Women's Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney. 1990 - Balance 1990: views, visions, influences, QAG, Brisbane. 1988 - Karnta, Touring South-east Asia, [non selling Karnta show]. 1981 - Die kunst der Australischen Ureinwohner lebt, Museum fur Volkerkunde, Leipzig, Staatliches Museum fur Volkerkunde, Dresden. Profile References Kleinert, Sylvia & Neale, Margo . 2000. The Oxford Companion to Aboriginal Art and Culture. Melbourne. Oxford University Press. Ryan, Judith. 1993. Images of Power, Aboriginal Art of the Kimberley. Melbourne. National Gallery of Victoria. Isaacs, Jennifer. 1999. Australian Aboriginal paintings. Sydney. Lansdowne. McCulloch, Susan. 2005. McCullochs Contemporary Aboriginal Art, the complete guide. Carlton, Vic. McCulloch and McCulloch. ARTIST CV Market Analysis MARKET ANALYSIS A detailed Market Analysis is currently being worked on. Should you like a completed Market Analysis for any artist, please let us know. Disclaimer: At Cooee Art Leven, we strive to maintain accurate and respectful artist profiles. Despite our efforts, there may be occasional inaccuracies. We welcome any corrections or suggested amendments. Please contact us with your feedback .

AHARLPER COUNTRY Cooee Art Redfern - 17 Thurlow St, Redern, NSW 2016 From 18 March to 09 April 2022 Viewing Room AHARLPER COUNTRY From 18 March to 09 April 2022 Cooee Art Redfern - 17 Thurlow St, Redern, NSW 2016 In Collaboration with Lauraine Diggins Fine Art “This is my country, I paint good colour, little dots. I like my painting.” Angelina Ngal was there from the start, a pillar of the formative years of Utopia women’s painting. Formerly known as Angelina Pwerl, – her husband’s name, Pwerl(e) in Alyawarr language is the equivalent to Ngal in the Anmatyerr language – she is today referred to as as Angelina Ngal. As did her sisters, Kathleen and Poly Ngal, Angelina began producing batiks and wooden sculptures in the mid 1980s. After taking part in the CAAMA ‘summer project’ in 1988-9, Angelina quickly adapted to painting on canvas. She was included in the first exhibition of Utopia women’s paintings, held in Alice Springs in 1990, swiftly gaining international recognition. This appreciation and respect never dipped or wavered in the decades since, though her ascent in the Australian general public’s eye was slow, despite widespread international acclaim among important collectors and museums. Domestically, she may still be less of a household name than some of her contemporaries. Nonetheless, her work was featured at this years Art Basel Miami, as well as being slated to tour internationally as part of the Met’s The Shape of Time: Art and Ancestors of Oceania. According to Dan F Stapleton in the Financial Times (January 28 2022), Ngal remains ‘something of an insider’s secret whose work is tightly held. ‘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.’* Undoubtedly, Angelina Ngal stands as one of the preeminent artists from Utopia. The long, steady growth of the artist’s acclaim befits her art. Ngal draws from a seemingly infinite well of patience and love of country, gradually layering fields of colour upon each other, considering carefully each swath of delicate marks. She paints her grandfather’s country, Aharlper. Originally, most of her paintings depicted the Bush Plum, which she represents through a focus of red dots into which she merges a variety of minute and painstakingly rendered coloured dots, ensuring that the tiny red dot is always central and clear. Angelina later extended her practice, producing a range of exquisitely coloured compositions that maintain a layer of meaning related to the Bush Plum. In these, points of geography, knowledge of sacred landmarks, and memories of hunting or ceremonial business result in a subtle and textured surface that hints to the viewer of an ethereal numinous landscape. To most of us, much of the sacred and ceremonial business is entirely or partly hidden. Still, the knowledge and reverence of country is palpable; it pulses beneath the surface of each delicate rendering of her country and Dreaming. Abstractly, the works conjure galaxies and molecules at once, the gigantic and the minute. Sometimes, standing before a work is like looking up to the skies as sheets of torrential rain bathe and nourish, drown and revive. Other times, we may be looking down at seeds and desert sand, a world of atomically small elements. This exhibition consists of two parts, running simultaneously at Lauraine Diggins Fine Art in Melbourne, and Cooee Art Redfern in Sydney. With a longstanding relationship, the galleries represent two of the foremost and major Australian Indigenous fine art galleries. The cross-state exhibition surveys the last two decades of Angelina Ngal’s practice, highlighting major works in her distinct styles, with a larger focus on the finely detailed later work the artist is most recognised for. 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.” Dan F Stapleton for the Financial Times, January 28 2022 VIEW CATALOGUE EX ?

Artist Profile for Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri < Back Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri 1950 ARTIST PROFILE ARTIST CV MARKET ANALYSIS READ FULL ARTIST PROFILE WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI - UNTITLED Sold AU$0.00 WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI - UNTITLED Sold AU$0.00 WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI - TINGARI Sold AU$0.00 WARLIMPIRRNGA TJAPALTJARRI - TINGARI AT NAAMI Sold AU$0.00 top Anchor 1 PROFILE Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri 1950 Warlimpirrnga was the eldest amongst a small group of Pintupi people who walked into the newly established community of Kiwirrkura in 1984. Before, they had maintained an isolated and traditional existence at the insistence of their elders, in country west of Lake Mackay in the Great Sandy Desert. With the death of these crucial leaders, the nine, who were hailed in the media as a ‘lost tribe’ and had never encountered white people at close proximity, sought out relatives who had already 'come in'. This was often the manner in which the more far-flung desert nomads slowly turned to the settled lifestyle, impelled also by drought and the encroaching European control of their traditional lands. When another brother Pierti, who had traveled with them, returned to the desert almost immediately, they were taken under the watchful guidance of Dr. George Tjapaltjarri, a ‘medicine man’ of high regard who could continue their instruction through the ‘law’. After observing Dr. George and other artists at work for several years, Warlimpirrnga asked for painting materials and Daphne Williams, the co-ordinator of Papunya Tula Artists, was impressed with his efforts. Eleven of his paintings that were exhibited at Gallery Gabrielle Pizzi, Melbourne in 1988 were bought and donated to the National Gallery of Victoria by collectors Nellie and Ron Castan. Works such as these, collected early in his painting career were unpretentious and favoured a strongly traditional tone. From the outset Warlimpirrnga painted stories related to the travels and sites created by the Tingari ancestors. Employing a classical geometric painting style as his starting point, he slowly developed his imagery and adopted the op-art-like intensity of resounding shapes and lines that became favoured by a number of senior Papunya male artists during the late 1980’s and beyond. His meticulously applied designs and methodical background dotting resulted in works that exhibited a distinct rhythmic quality. This was reflected and strengthened in the fluidity of his line work while subtle variations in the under-painted colour imparted the feeling of the changing light as it lowers its angle and strikes the sand ridges and dunes in the desert. The zig zag designs and meandering lines echoed the parallel fluting incised on traditional shields, storyboards and ceremonial objects made by men in the Central and Western Desert. As Warlimpirrnga’s art practice progressed, these lines became curved and closely repeated, imparting a sense of kinetic energy that suffused the whole canvas. His primary subjects are the Snake and Kangaroo Dreamings of his country and initiation stories connected to the sites of Marawa and Kanapilya, close to his birthplace. For time immemorium, men and boys would gather there for ceremonies, re-living the legends of their Tingari ancestors. Meandering lines sometimes re-trace painted body designs or signify the kunai snakes that also crossed the land with the ancestors and drank from the same sacred waterholes. Sometimes, the men and boys would burn the spinifex grass country to catch kangaroos. After painting for some time, Warlimpirrnga began teaching his brothers Walala and Thomas Tjapaltjarri to paint and by 1996 Walala had taken to accompanying his brother on trips to Alice Springs. All three brothers as well as Dr. George Tjapaltjarri began painting for Gallery Gondwana during the late 1990’s.This was due in large part to the personal relationship they shared with Gallery Gondwana Manager Brice Ponsford, who had worked for Papunya Tula in Kiwirrkura when they first arrived in the community a decade earlier. By 1999 Dr. George painted less and less frequently as his eyesight began to fail, and Walala, preferring his independence, lived in Alice Springs and Katherine where he painted for a number of independent dealers. Warlimpirrnga, however, tired of life too far from his family and homeland and returned to paint principally for the art centre other than on his infrequent travels during which he painted for others. Amongst the female members of the group that left the desert with him, Yukultji, Yalti and Takarria Napangati all became painters working with Papunya Tula. In 2000, Warlimpirringa visited Sydney for the opening of the Papunya Tula: Genesis and Genius exhibition. During this visit he made a ground painting at the Art Gallery of NSW along with four other men from Kiwirrkura. Since that time, Warlimpirringa remained most at home in his community where he lives with his wife and children, except for occasional visits to Alice Springs or the southern cities when his art career demands it. ARTIST CV Market Analysis MARKET ANALYSIS Having walked in from the Great Sandy Desert in 1984 Warlimpirrnga spent a number of years observing other artists at work prior to creating his first painting in 1987. Since then, he has worked exclusively for Papunya Tula, except for a sustained period during the mid to late 1990s and during infrequent visits to Alice Springs where he has developed relationships with several reputable dealers. It is unsurprising therefore that all of his top ten results have been for works created for Papunya Tula. 2016 was easily Warlimpirrnga’s highest grossing year at auction with total sales of $322,747 until 2018, on the back of the sale of an Untitled Papunya Tula work which easily eclipsed his previous record price which had been set as long ago as 2006. Every one of his ten highest results have been set since then. With two works entering his top ten results during 2016 and a new record price of $286,471 set during that year, Warlimpirrnga was definitely singled out as an artist whose prices were definitely on an upward trajectory. His results in 2015 had proved to be the game changer. American uber collector Dennis Scholl included his work in the touring exhibition No Boundaries and followed this up with a solo exhibition for the artist at the prestigious New York Bowrey Gallery Salon 94 in October. The exhibition elicited articles in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Village Voice, Observer, Architectural Digest and a host of Australian local and national newspapers. That same month Bonham's set a new second highest record when they offered an untitled work featuring designs associated with the Lake Site of Wilkinkarra that had been painted for Papunya Tula in 2005. The work, deaccessioned from the Thomas Vroom Collection, sold for $31,720. In 2018 no less than 3 works entered his top ten records at 2nd, 3rd and 4th places. Though only ten works sold of sixteen offered the total for these three paintings alone was $324,630 making him the 4th most successful artist of the year - his best year ever. Until 2015, Warlimpirrnga was considered but one of a number of Papunya artists who had developed a relatively generic op-art like style. While his finest works feature meticulously applied designs that exhibit a distinct rhythmic quality, many earlier works lack distinction. So many Pintupi men have adopted the zig zag designs and parallel lines that mimic the fluting incised on their traditional ceremonial objects and weapons that it was hard to see why this particular artist should rise to especially great distinction. In my own mind, others across the tri-state border amongst the Western Pitjantjatjarra seem to have been far more adventurous with a fresh and bold new approach to painting. Papunya men’s paintings, by comparison, seem accomplished but formulaic. Yet once again, this simply demonstrates the power of the branded super-collector and the Papunya Tula brand. Having expressed this opinion, it is nonetheless true that Warlimpirrnga’s best works are highly accomplished and will always be worth adding to any fine collection. My advice would be to seek out works distinguished by the fluidity of the line work and subtlety of colour variation. It seems to me that these will ultimately prove the most engaging and satisfying. Disclaimer: At Cooee Art Leven, we strive to maintain accurate and respectful artist profiles. Despite our efforts, there may be occasional inaccuracies. We welcome any corrections or suggested amendments. Please contact us with your feedback .

DownsJarin Jarinyanu David Downs Jarinyanu David Downs 1925 - 1995 Jarrinyanu, Djarinyanu, Jorijonu, Downes Jarinyanu David Downs was one of those old cowboys who, like Rover Thomas, was born in the Great Sandy Desert in the 1920’s and eventually, toward the end of their lives, settled in the Kimberley region in the North West of Australia. He first moved from his traditional lands to the cattle stations in the 1940s, while still in his early twenties, to join the family of his promised bride. The next twenty years were spent droving cattle as well as occasionally working in the gold mines around Halls Creek. Jarinyanu’s first European boss bequeathed him his European name, David Downs, however when he eventually settled in Fitzroy Crossing, due to its proximity to the Wangkajunga country of his birth, he reverted to using his own real name. He first began working as an artist after moving to Fitzroy Crossing in the 1960's, decorating boomerangs, shields and coolamons. However it wasn’t until 1980 that he was commissioned to work on paper and canvas, using traditional ochres with natural resins as a binder. These initial works typically were dramatic dark silhouettes against a white acrylic background. Pictorial symbols were used to represent country and, though figures appear, they were merely one element within a larger composition, in contrast to the dominance of the figure in his later paintings. The influence of Christianity could be seen from the outset in many of his earliest works. The United Aboriginal Mission established in the 1950s at Fitzroy Crossing was a powerful presence in the community. As Jarinyanu’s career developed he developed a visual language that expressed his Christian beliefs coupled with a celebration of traditional law. He believed that as god created the natural world, it was perfectly acceptable to pay homage to his creation of the surrounding environment in accordance with its local cultural form. In doing so he created a relationship between Australian Christianity and specific cultural sites, which white Australia had neglected to identify. At the same time, he daringly depicted ancestral beings in human form, visualizing the once unseen Ngarrangkani (Dreaming) ancestors. The primary vehicle for expressing this two-way religious philosophy was the song cycle of Kurtal, the ancestral rain man. He was born on a distant island and traveled to the Kimberley as a cyclone. As he moved on inland he created places of ‘living water’ (permanent water sources) and visited other rain men, occasionally gaining valuable items from them through trickery and magic. The figure of Kurtal, often depicted with ceremonial headdress, and the participants in ceremonies relating to his story, appear constantly in Jarinyanu’s work. Other than his occasional canvases depicting Christian themes such as Whale Fish Vomiting Jonah 1993 and Jesus Preach’im All People 1986, it is the Kurtal figure that filled canvas after canvas until his death in 1995. Jarinyanu’s success at bridging two such separate cosmologies can be seen as part of a broader tradition of cultural exchange in the Kimberley, predating European contact. However, it is a sign of great triumph that his contact with Christianity did not weaken his commitment to ritual law. He was very conscious of himself as an artist. ‘I’m different’ he would claim, when describing himself. His peers would describe his directness by exclaiming, ‘he’ll tell you right out’ (Kentish 1995: 2) He had come to terms with the concept of individual fame brought keenly into focus by viewing his own work in art galleries, and the experience of having his portrait painted and hung in the Archibald Prize. His ability to negotiate his way in the white world no doubt had great influence on his success. He was one of three Walmajarri artists at Fitzroy crossing that began painting on canvas through private representation as individual artists. Jarinyanu along with Peter Skipper Jangkarti were represented by Duncan Kentish, whilst Jimmy Pike, whose career began in Fremantle prison in 1980, was represented by Steve Culley and David Wroth of Desert Designs. Individual representation brought many rewards, particularly solo exhibitions in galleries such as Bonython-Meadmore Gallery in 1988, Roar 2 Studios in 1991, Chapman Gallery in 1993, and Ray Hughes in Sydney in 1995, where always resplendent in his white shirt and pants, he was presented as a contemporary artist alongside non-Indigenous artists. Jarinyanu David Downs enjoyed a highly successful career encompassing sculptural artifacts, painting and a significant body of limited edition prints. He was one of the earliest Aboriginal artists to be individually represented and, at the time of his death, was considered one of the leading lights of the contemporary Aboriginal art movement. While David Downs’ success cannot be solely attributed to clever representation there is no doubt that he would never have achieved the degree of notoriety and acclaim had he not shared a special relationship with his agent and friend, Duncan Kentish. His unique imagery based on two vastly different religious traditions was conspicuous in galleries in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They first appeared at auction in 1997 when three sold of the four offered and, at their peak, went on to attract lofty prices on the secondary market. By 2001, six years after his death, 27 works had been offered for sale of which 21 had sold for a clearance rate of 78%, however, the story has been dramatically different since that time with his career clearance rate falling to 61% by 2011. In a bullish market, growing exponentially for all but a few major artists, a drop from a success rate of 78% to one of 61% appears to be dramatic. Catastrophic even, if you happen to own a work and want to sell it. While his record price at auction was set in 2000 for Kurtal Lying Down at Muwa 1988 which achieved $36,800 at Sotheby’s against a presale estimate of $18,000-25,000 Lot 121), the large number works that have been passed in at auction indicates clearly that vendors need to be far more realistic in their expectations if they wish to find a buyer. There have been exceptions, but they are extremely rare. Works featuring distinctly Christian imagery are more unique and less repetitious than paintings depicting Kurtal. Only three of these have been offered for sale at auction and all have sold. Whale Fish Vomiting Jonah 1993, measuring 112 x 137 cm fetched an impressive $14,950 in 1999, its desirability no doubt enhanced by the fact that it was being deaccessioned by the Holmes a Court collection and carried its code number. The two others were very small and sold for $4,800 and $3,600 when offered in Sotheby’s June 2004 sale (Lots 449 and 450). Lawson~Menzies sold a magnificent Ceremonial Shield c.1989 for $18 000 in May 2005 (Lot 8) some three times the estimated price. And in July 2006 Sotheby’s set the artist’s second highest price of $31,200 for a wonderful small work measuring just 91 x 61 cm that had been included in Niagara Galleries’ Blue Chip III collectors exhibition (Lot 91). These exceptions are, however, by and large deviations from the norm. Though good pieces can still receive significant sale prices, works in the medium range have moved little, and re-sales on the secondary market have proved unprofitable. Kurtal with Headdress of Radiating Wuring 1990 sold for $3,600 in 2004, just a fraction higher than its sale price of $3,450 in 1998, despite a significant jump in its estimate from $3,000-5,000 up to $6,000-9,000. This simply underlines the fact that attempts at raising the value on mid-range and high-end works as the years have progressed have been largely met with failure. Dance of Kurtal, which represents the artist's 5th and 6th highest results, depreciated in value by over $3,000 by the time of the second sale four years later, in 2007. David Downs was a unique and important artist who created a significant body of visually striking works. The relatively poor performance of his works at auction during the boom years 2004-2007 should not put collectors off from expressing interest in his works and buying selected pieces after deliberation. Many good works will be offered at far more reasonable estimates during the next decade. He is not an easy artist to access visually and many seem to find it difficult to discern the magnificent from the mundane. His images are an anomaly, as were Jimmy Pike's, in a region more renowned for lack of figuration. If you have any doubts about your own artistic intuition, then perhaps you are better placing your faith in safer waters, for many other artists are far easier to read. Explore our artworks See some of our featured artworks below ANGELINA PWERLE NGAL - UNTITLED ( BUSH RAISIN MAN) Price AU$3,000.00 ALISON (JOJO) PURUNTATAMERI - WINGA (TIDAL MOVEMENT/WAVES) Out of stock LILY YIRDINGALI JURRAH HARGRAVES NUNGARRAYI - KURLURRNGALINYPA JUKURRPA Price From AU$13,500.00 BRONWYN BANCROFT - UNTITLED Out of stock JOSHUA BONSON - SKIN: A CELEBRATION OF CULTURE Price AU$8,500.00 BOOK - KONSTANTINA - GADIGAL NGURA Price From AU$99.00 FREDDIE TIMMS - MOONLIGHT VALLEY Price AU$35,000.00 NEIL ERNEST TOMKINS - BURN THERE, DON'T BURN THERE Price AU$7,000.00 SHOP NOW

Artist Profile for Charlie Nangukwirrk < Back Charlie Nangukwirrk Charlie Nangukwirrk ARTIST PROFILE ARTIST CV MARKET ANALYSIS READ FULL ARTIST PROFILE CHARLIE NANGUKWIRRK - MIMIH SPIRIT SOLD AU$900.00 CHARLIE NANGUKWIRRK - LORRKON Sold AU$0.00 top Anchor 1 PROFILE Charlie Nangukwirrk ARTIST CV Market Analysis MARKET ANALYSIS Disclaimer: At Cooee Art Leven, we strive to maintain accurate and respectful artist profiles. Despite our efforts, there may be occasional inaccuracies. We welcome any corrections or suggested amendments. Please contact us with your feedback .