Nyapanyapa Yunupiŋu

Untitled, 4305L - AC 6.7 Birrka'mirri , 2012
paint pen on clear acetate plastic
83 x 58.5 cm (acetate); 86 x 61.5 cm (frame)

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Provenance
Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney
Acquired from the above on 13 September 2018

Exhibited
Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery at Sydney Contemporary, Carriageworks, 12-16 September 2018


Nyapanyapa Yunupiŋu (1945-2021) was one of the 'seven sisters' group of women Yolŋu artists from the Yunupiŋu family. She was taught to paint by her father, the cultural leader Muŋgurrawuy Yunupiŋu. In her early career she created figurative prints and bark paintings, but from 2009 she became known for her mayilimiriw works. This word translates directly to 'meaningless' and is a unique approach to creative practice within Yolŋu culture. 

Nyapanyapa consciously eliminated figurative and ancestral narratives from her work, instead focussing on the forms, line and colour that she could create using natural pigments and cross hatching' (Rachel Kent (ed), Miwatj Yolŋu - Sunrise People, Bundanon, NSW, 2024, p.49)

The artist began working with acetate and paint pen for her installation at 18th Biennale of Sydney: all our relations, Sydney in 2012