Bark Paintings from Arnhem Land

The works on this wall are bark paintings. They are part of a long tradition in Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of painting on flattened sheets of eucalyptus bark. These paintings show images of Ancestor beings and have been made using a technique called rarrk. By layering a series of closely drawn parallel lines on top of each other, artists create the illusion of different shades and textures to form their respective miny’tji, or sacred clan design. More recently, some senior female artists in Arnhem Land have developed a new expressive kind of bark painting that gives the artist more freedom, going beyond the images used in their sacred stories. Pink and white circles by Mrs N. Yunupingu, which you can see in front of you, is a beautiful work that reflects this new form of expression. Circular patterns take up most of the space in this work, which is very different from the more meticulous style of bark painting like that of John Mawrndjul. Milmingkan under Wak Wak, displayed here on the same wall, features intricate and fine lines, which result in refined and abstract images that tell the sacred stories of his Ancestors.