Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri

In this article, we have used smaller thumbnail images. Click on the thumbnails for a larger image.

Dreaming

His work is known around the world, exhibited in numerous internationally renowned galleries and brings a unique perspective on and challenge to our concepts of art. He's Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri, the grand master of the Aboriginal art movement. But his influence extends far beyond Aboriginal art, and into the mainstream of Australian art.

Tjapaltjarri was born around 1932 (like many of his generation, records are often unreliable) on Napperby Station in the Northern Territory. He had no formal art training (he had little formal education at all) and his early jobs were as a station hand and stockman on cattle properties around the McDonnell Ranges.

These tough jobs however were to form the core of Tjapaltjarri's artistic vision. Working on the stations, he encountered the traditional "dreaming trails" of the Aboriginal peoples in the McDonnell Ranges to the west of Alice Springs. Tjapaltjarri soon gained an extensive knowledge of these trails; which provide links not only to family history but to the Dreaming (sometimes known as the Dreamtime) itself.

In the 1950s, Tjapaltjarri had begun carving artefacts from wood, mainly snakes and goannas, and was regarded as one of the finest carvers in the region. By the 70s however, he had turned his hand to painting. Legend has it that one of Albert Namatjira's sons gave him his first paints. His brother Tim Leura encouraged him in this endeavour, and Tjapaltjarri soon joined Geoffrey Bardon's group of "painting men". At the Papunya community, he was a key figure in the Papunya Tula art movement. >>>

While other Aboriginal artists (notably his contemporary Lin Onus) embraced European conventions in their work, Tjapaltjarri remained true to the conventions of traditional Aboriginal art; particularly dot-painting.

By the late 1970s, Tjapaltjarri had developed his own particular aesthetic. The foundation was the dot-painting tradition, blending the trails of his ancestors, certain figurative elements, and Aboriginal iconography. An example is Lightning Strike (1994). Against the multi-coloured dotted background, a trail meanders from the left hand side, culminating in the explosive image in the centre. Flashes of white circle the central blast, evoking clouds and landscape illuminated by the lightning.

Other paintings include elements like footprints, animal tracks and sunbursts. They reveal a strong affinity for nature and the land, and a strong affinity for Aboriginal iconography and storytelling.

Tjapaltjarri's work is represented in most of this country's major galleries, including the National Gallery in Canberra, the Art Gallery of NSW, the Queensland Western Australian and South Australian art galleries, as well as the Holmes a Court Gallery in Perth and the Pacific Asia Museum and Kelton Foundation collections in Los Angeles.

From being one of the pre-eminent Aboriginal artists, Tjapaltjarri has transcended the cultural divide to become one of Australia's best known artists. His work continues to fascinate and move; proving that great art doesn't have to be created in the urban environment, but can find a voice in the red heart of the continent.

David Edwards

Send us your feedback on this article or anything else in The Blurb