Art to set the soul free at Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery
We visit ‘we are everything all the time always’, investigating the cycle of life and death in aboriginal art.
By
Rhea Mathur
January 31, 2024
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
Described by her son, Jamie, as bringing 'the Milky Way to life,' this hollow log from the stringybark tree is painted by the artist Naminapu Maymuru-White and sits in the middle of the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery. With stars of various sizes cut into its bark, the log is painted with natural pigments such as ochre, which can be made by mixing ferric oxide, sand, and clay. These Earth pigments are used to write a story along the log, allowing it to capture Aboriginal history, and act not only as a piece of art but also as a novel meant to educate future generations about the history of the Manggalili clan.
Titled “We are everything all the time always”, this exhibition is curated by Rebecca Hossack, who established her gallery thirty-five years ago to discuss the complexities and histories of Aboriginal Australian art. With the help of this exhibition, Hossack now highlights the sculptures produced by the Yirrkala community in their ceremony for the deceased. These works are a reflection on the cycle of life and death, and help visitors better understand the cultural beliefs held by the Yirrkala, currently residing in Arnhem Land, a region in the northeast corner of Australia’s northern territory.
The hollow logs showcased in the exhibition are referred to as larrakitj by the Yirrkala community. Placed across the main exhibition room, they resemble a sculptural forest, where each larrakitj is unique in its design, size and colour. For the ceremony for the departed, larrakitj are traditionally made from logs found in nature that have already been hollowed out by termites; they are then smoothed, shaped, cut and painted with symbols that represent and honour the departed soul. The community, in the ceremony, then places the bones of the departed onto the larrakitj and allows it to rest in nature. With rain and wind, eventually, the body and the larrakitj return to the soil and the Earth from which they are born, allowing the spirit of the departed to peacefully be set free. This ceremony is also important to the Yirrkala because it allows them to grieve death as a community while reflecting on the spirit that comes from the Earth, naturally decays, and rests in everything around us. This sculptural forest is a reflection on the importance of nature in creating, sustaining, and releasing not just mankind, but everything around us.
The larrakitj fills up the room in which the exhibition takes place, leaving a small spiral staircase in the centre of the room allowing visitors to move to the gallery’s permanent collection, which also features a room where everyone is invited to sit and read more about Aboriginal and indigenous art. Contained in small boxes, in a room with maps, chairs and paintings, sit many books that bring focus to art techniques and stories from across the world that are often overlooked. This includes a series of research into Aboriginal art, its multiple languages, beliefs, areas and cultures as well as books on Indian indigenous art including Worli and Gond art.
Complimented by the dearth of information present in its permanent collection, the exhibition allows its visitors generate a holistic understanding of the complexities of narratives, languages and identities within Aboriginal art,allowing them to understand a little bit of what is often forgotten. The sculptural forest that Hossack curates, in this way, brings focus on the stories hidden behind the animals, symbols and colours chosen to be represented on the larrakitj.
Painted by the artist, Peter (Justin) Guyula Wuyulngurra, one of the exhibited larrakitj was made in 2021 and is meticulously decorated with black coloured turtles that are outlined by white paint. In the background are white and black checks and this pattern continues across the entire hundred- and twenty-five-centimetre sculpture. The turtles here represent the ones in the Mukarr Djambatj song, a story and history of turtle hunters that belongs to the Badaypaday. While different versions of this story exist today, it mainly focuses on a rope made out of the fibres from a hibiscus tree which was used to catch giant turtles. By referencing this story in his work, Guyula celebrates not only the written Aboriginal history but also the various forms of art which include song and dance. This oral history is addressed in multiple larrakitj in the exhibition, and allows each piece of art to contain its own story, history, language and origin, much like Aboriginal art. The lack of detailed descriptions of these works also allows the visitors to bring their own cultural nuance and understanding to the gallery and connect with the work in front of them.
Similar to the checkered effect created by Guyula in black and white around his turtle, the exhibition and the gallery, work with one another to express the rich oral and artistic history that belongs to the many communities and clans in Australia. It refers to their use of natural resources which, unlike Western art that uses oil and acrylics on canvas, is designed to slowly decay in nature, returning to its roots. The exhibition focuses on the essential role that nature plays in the spiritual journey between life and death, and showcases the work crafted by the Yirrkala community to bring forward forgotten histories and, with the reflection of the contemporary visitor, make them anew.
we are everything all the time always is showing at Rebecca Hossack until 28th February.
