All over Paddington and across Brisbane, Aboriginal art has become the go-to for walls of apartments and homes of all sizes. Its cultural history, amazing use of colour and uniqueness is celebrated now all over the world. The handed-down stories of Dreamtime, the aboriginal interpretation of the world of up to 50,000 years ago, have been turned into valuable pieces of art.
Aboriginal art has become a very sound investment over the years. Peter King runs a hidden gem buried in plain sight on Campbell Street just off Given Terrace in Paddington. Red Sand Art Gallery has for decades helped develop up and coming as well as successful aboriginal artists and he has recently secured a series of works from the highly sought-after Pintubi Aboriginal artist Linda Syddick Napaljarri, whose work hangs on walls all over the world. All of her works on display were collected prior to 2008.
A Central Desert icon, Linda has been a finalist at the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards at least four times.
About Aboriginal Artist Linda Syddick
Linda, whose Aboriginal name is Tjunkiya Wukula Napaltjarri, is a Pintupi woman born at Lake Mackay in the Gibson Desert, WA, in 1937. After her father was killed by a revenge spearing party whilst she was a baby, Linda was brought up by her mother and her stepfather, Lankata Shorty Tjungurrayi.
Linda was raised in the desert in traditional nomadic fashion until the age of eight when her family came across Haasts Bluff Mission and ration station. It was here that Linda was instructed in Lutheran doctrine and the ways of the Western world. It was also here that she remembers Lankata painting canvases made from calico ration bags using natural ochres as early as 1945.
Before Lankata died in 1985, he specifically instructed Linda to carry on his work and paint his Dreamings. And so it was that in 1986 Linda was taught the art of dot painting by two of her uncles Uta Uta Tjangala and Nosepeg Tjupurrula.
Photo credit: Red Sand Art Gallery
Her paintings have been collected by organisations such as the Richard Kelton Foundation USA, The National Gallery of Australia ACT and the Brendt Museum of Anthropology WA.
Dreaming and Aboriginal Art at Red Sand Art Gallery
Art enthusiasts looking to find amazing Aboriginal art can find a treasure-trove at Red Sand Art Gallery. Many of the artworks at this art gallery come from the small but very well-known community of “Utopia,” located 230 kilometres northeast of Alice Springs.
Kathleen Petyarre, Nancy Petyarre, Greeny Purvis, Cowboy Louis Pwerle, Glory Ngale, Gloria Petyarre are just some of the many Utopia artists available at Red Sand Art Gallery. Sadly, many of the great Utopia artists are now deceased.
Artists from The Utopia Homelands gained recognition through the medium of Batik with the support of the government in the late ‘80s. The Utopia women created a major work entitled, “A Picture Story,” which exhibited in Australia and overseas and was later acquired by the Holmes a Court collection 1989.
Canvas and acrylic were introduced in the late 1980s where the freedom of artistic expressions relating to the Dreamings of these Aboriginals were encouraged and developed.
All the works of Aboriginal artists are from a “Dreaming,” which is a story owned by various tribes and their members explaining the creation of life, people and animals. Each dreaming has specific songs and ceremony that are often represented in Aboriginal Art.
A Dreaming works just like intellectual property where a Dreaming story is passed on protectively. As such, an artist cannot relate or paint another Aborigine’s creation without prior consent or permission from the owner of the Dreaming.
Aboriginal Art as Investment
Needless to say, the artist’s heart and soul are deeply connected to the paintings they make, which makes these paintings extra precious. However, you don’t need to spend a fortune to get a collectible piece of Aboriginal art.
Prices of artworks at Red Sand Art Gallery start at $90 for the small original works and go up from there. These artworks are highly collectible and the value can significantly appreciate over time. In one instance, a painting by Emily Kame Kngwarreye, a 632cm by 275cm Synthetic polymer paint on linen with four panels, sold for $1,056,000 in 2007.
The wide range of artworks ranging in price from $90 to several thousand dollars has been bought by some of the largest collectors all over the world and particularly by the many overseas clients that visited Peter’s galleries in Alice Springs and Titree.
Red Sand Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
