Women's Dreaming (Yam Dreaming)
by Maureen Purvis Kngwarreye
Skin- Anmatyerre
Stretched canvas
Maureen Purvis Kngwarreye is an Anmatyerre woman from Boundary Bore in the Utopia
Homelands, Central Australia. Her work uses bold and bright colours depicting her plant totem, the Bush Yam. Maureen is the daughter of Greeny Purvis Petyarre who is a senior artist and law man at Utopia. Maureen artworks depict her experiments with technique whilst maintaining a soft yet colourful palette. Maureen has created her own unique and distinct style with high attention to detail.
Maureen Purvis is from Utopia, a community located north easr of Alice Springs known for its quality art.
Maureen is daughter to Greeny Purvis Petyarre and Kathleen Kemarre. Both parents are highly respected artists. Greeny was senior custodian for Alhalkere country.
Maureen was involved in the Batik project of the 1980s, when 88 silk batiks of A Picture Story and 81 Summer Project paintings, the result of art co-ordinator Rodney Gooch having distributed stretched canvases around the communities, were bought by the Homes a Court Collection, which together with a later exhibition of the works of Emily Kame Kngwarreye and Louie Pwerle at PICA, raised the profile of the enormously rich talent of the community.
Acrylic on Canvas
Canvas Size- 116 x 123cm
Certificate of Authenticity
Maureen is from Utopia, a community located 240 kilometres north east of Alice Springs known for its quality art.
Maureen’s parents, Greeny Purvis Petyarre and Kathleen Kemarre are both respected artists.
Maureen was involved in the Batik project of the 1970s, when Western craft practices and traditional Indigenous imagery were combined for the first time. Maureen was one of the early artists who began to use acrylic paint and canvas in the1980s.
The majority of Maureen’s works depict kame, or the seeds of the pencil yam, an important form of bush tucker for Maureen’s community. The works are characterised by the use of intricate dotting and vibrant colours. Maureen developed her own unique style to depict this story.
Since the 1970's Maureen Purvis Kngwarreye was involved the Batik project, and features in the prestigious book 'Utopia A Picture Story'. Maureen was one of the early artists to use canvas and acrylic paint from the1980s. Raised by a generation of indigenous artists including her great aunt Emily Kngwarreye (1910-1996) the most famous Australian artist and exposed to experience and success of many great family artist's, Maureen was destined to be also a great artist.
Yet, Maureen created her own unique and distinct style, her paintings are high-quality with attention to details. Maureen's father is Greeny Purvis Petyarre and mother Kathleen Kemarre are recognized artists, also Gloria Mills Petyarre (B.1932) Maureen's father sister.
Maureen family encompass many widely acknowledged Australian artists including Gloria Petyarre (B.1945), Anna Petyarre (B.1965), Lindsay Bird (B.1935) and Maureen's older sister Judy Purvis. Maureen Purvis work is represented in numerous corporate and private collections around the world including: Richard Kelton Foundation Santa Monica USA, Homes a Court Gallery and gallery Collection, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Art Bank Sydney, Kerry Stokes collection, Art Gallery of Western Australia.
1989 Utopia Women’s Paintings, the First Works On Canvas, A Summer Project, 1988-89, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney
1990 Utopia- A Picture Story, an exhibition of 88 works on silk from the Robert Holmes á Court Collection by Utopia Artists which toured Eire and Scotland
2000 Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, N.T
2002 Art and Soul Gallery with Mbantua Gallery, Nashville, T.N, U.S.A
2002 'The Cove Gallery' Portland, Mbantua Gallery, Oregon U.S.A
2002 Urban Wine Works, Mbantua Gallery, Portland, Oregon U.S.A
2002 Mary's Woods, Mbantua Gallery, Portland Oregon U.S.A
2003 New City Merchants with Mbantua Gallery, Knoxville, T.N, U.S.A
2003 Art and Soul Gallery with Mbantua Gallery, Nashville, T.N, U.S.A
2003 'The Cove Gallery' Portland, Mbantua Gallery, Oregon U.S.A
2003 Contemporary Aboriginal Art Event, Umpqua Bank, Mbantua Gallery, Portland, Oregon U.S.A
2003 Mary's Woods, Mbantua Gallery, Portland Oregon U.S.A
2003 Art from the Dreamtime at Portland Art Museum, Mbantua Gallery, Portland Oregon U.S.A
Aug-Sep 2004 Mbantua Gallery USA exhibitions; Portland, Nashville, Hartford and Greenwich
Sept 2004-Jul 2006 Evolution of Utopia, Mbantua Gallery Cultural Museum, Alice Springs, N.T opened by the Honorable Robert Hill
March 2005 Yam Dreaming – Atnwelarre, Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, N.T
COLLECTIONS
Art Gallery of Western Australia (Perth)
Homes a Court Gallery and gallery Collection Perth
Mbantua Gallery Private Collection, Alice Springs
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