AFTRS

Kurltjunyintja Giles Tjapaltjarri "Mr Giles' with AFTRS graduate Warwick Thornton (Samson & Delilah) and Hetti Perkins at the official launch of Tjamu Tjamu August 21, 2009.

About the artwork

Tjamu Tjamu 2009 depicts the birthplace of artist Kurltjunyintja Giles Tjapaltjarri in the Gibson Desert, near the West Australian border within the Northern Territory. At this rock hole a group of ancestral women camped with one wati (man) after whom this site is named. He was the kangaroo ancestor and the women were his relatives under customary law. The wati travelled from the north and called the women to come and camp with him. The women resisted his advances preferring to call him tjamu tjamu (grandfather, grandson). The ancestor then continued his travels to Tjutlpi, Witunkuntja, Wirti, Makarra, Millmillpa and Kurryl. This is the artist's Tjukurrpa (ancestral stories) and the artwork represents the cultural significance of his country.

About the artist

Kurltjunyintja (Jackie) Giles Tjapaltjarri lived a traditional life in the Gibson Desert before visiting the Warburton Mission in Western Australia. As a Maparnjarra (traditional healer) Mr Giles travels extensively and his knowledge and authority is widely respected in the Western Desert and beyond. Mr Giles is a founding member of Kayili Artists, a community owned enterprise in Patjarr (Karilwara). The paintings of the Kayili Artists describe the intricate network of Tjukurrpa that feature in the landscape and the creative journeys of the Tingarri (ancestral men and women). Mr Giles based his concept for Tjamu Tjamu 2009 on a painting of the same name in the collection of the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.  The installation reflects the immense scale of the artist's country and draws on traditional Western Desert symbolism.

Sadly Mr Giles passed away in February 2010, just six months after the launch of the artwall.

Photos of the installation of Tjamu Tjamu at AFTRS in 2009