Born: c.1945. Atneltye (Boundary Bore), Utopia, Northern Territory
Also known as: Rosemary Pitjara, Rosemary Petyarre, Rosemary Bird Petyarre
Language: Anmatyerre
Dreamings: Bush Tucker, Medicine Plants, Women's Dreaming (Awelye), Bush Yam, Yam Seed and Bush Yam Flower
Rosemary paints Country she has lived on her whole life. She was born at Atneltye, better known as Boundary Bore, an outstation on Utopia Station about 270 kilometres north east of Alice Springs. Her language is Anmatyerre and her skin name is Pitjara, which is also written Petyarre, so her work turns up under several versions of her name.
She comes from one of the most recognised families in Aboriginal art. Rosemary is a niece of Emily Kame Kngwarreye, sister of Jeannie Pitjara, and half sister to Greeny Purvis Petyarre and Evelyn Pultara. Through skin she is also sister to Gloria, Kathleen and Ada Bird Petyarre. It was Emily who encouraged her to move off silk and onto canvas, and the stories Rosemary paints came down to her and to Jeannie through the women of that family.
Her working life as an artist began with batik in the 1980s, when the Utopia women were setting their Dreamings down in wax and dye on silk. The Summer Project run through CAAMA in 1988 and 1989 put canvas and acrylic in front of those same women for the first time, and Rosemary has painted that way ever since. In 1994 she was one of a group of Utopia women who travelled to Indonesia to work alongside batik artists there and bring new techniques home. Today she divides her time between Utopia and Alice Springs. She is known for the flow of her leaf forms and for the fine seed work scattered through them, and like most of the Utopia painters she is not shy with colour.
DREAMINGS
Bush Tucker - Rosemary grew up living off this Country, so she knows its bush food inside out, where to find it, when it is ready and how it is prepared. Her bush tucker paintings map that everyday knowledge, passed down through generations of women before her.
Medicine Plants - This is the story behind today's painting. Bush medicine comes from a number of different native plants rather than any single one, and the women know which leaf suits which ailment. The leaves are gathered, then boiled and drunk for coughs, colds and chest complaints, crushed into a poultice for wounds and sores, or worked up with fat into a balm. It is practical bush knowledge as much as it is a Dreaming, because the plants keep people well in body and in spirit.
Women's Dreaming (Awelye) - Awelye refers to the ceremonial body paint designs worn by women. Ochre and charcoal are traced onto the skin in patterns that shift depending on the occasion and the seniority of the woman wearing them. It is a Dreaming about culture, status and the strong role women hold in Anmatyerre life.
Bush Yam, Yam Seed and Bush Yam Flower - The Yam Dreaming is one of Rosemary's real signatures, and she is known for the fine detail of the tiny seeds scattered through the leaves. It follows the whole life of the plant, from flower to seed to the yam itself, and reflects her deep connection to Country and to the seasonal foods it provides.
EXHIBITIONS AND COLLECTIONS
Rosemary's work has been shown in Australia and overseas since the earliest days of the Utopia movement, and is held by collectors worldwide.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
1989 Utopia Women's Paintings, A Summer Project, Alice Springs
1990 A Picture Story, 88 silk batiks from the Robert Holmes à Court Collection, touring Ireland and Scotland
1993 Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Centre, Alice Springs
1996 The Meeting Place, touring exhibition, Australia
1996 Nangara, Stichting Sint-Jan, Brugge, Belgium
COLLECTIONS
The Robert Holmes à Court Collection, Perth
Private collections in Australia and overseas
This painting can be hung vertically or horizontally.
With all our artwork displayed on our online gallery we take a lot of time to ensure the colours are true. If you require further images, please contact us.
This painting was purchased directly from Rosemary, and a gallery certificate of authenticity will be provided with the sale.
