Current Category

Kudditji Kngwarreye was born circa 1928 and his country is the Utopia region or more specifically a place called Pmara Jutunta (Ti-Tree). Kudditji’s language group is Eastern Anmatyerre. Kngwarreye is an Anmatyerre elder and therefore the custodian of particular stories or dreamings including the emu ancestors story. He is the younger brother of the late Emily Kame Kngwarreye who was a prominent painter. Kudditji began his working life as a stockman, a common occupation for those of Aboriginal decent living on pastoral leases in Central Australia at that time. Later he worked in the mines until he became inspired by the artwork at Papunya. Kudditji began painting around 1986 starting off using dot style art, which over time has evolved becoming more abstract using massive blocks of colours, many of which represent the "My Country" story.

Selected Exhibitions: 1990 Art Dock, "Contemporary Art from Australia", Noumea, New Caledonia; 1991 Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Arts Centre, Alice Springs; 1992 "Tjukurrpa", Museum for Volkerkunde, Basel, Switzerland; 1999 Chapel off Chapel Gallery, Melbourne; 2000 Mia Mia Aboriginal Gallery, Melbourne; 2003 New Paintings, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne; 2004 "My Country", Japingka Gallery, Perth; 2004 "My Country", New Paintings, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne; 2004 Waterhole Aboriginal Art, Sofitel, Wentworth Hotel Exhibition, Sydney; 2005 Colours in Country, Art Mob, Hobart, Tasmania; 2005 New Paintings, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne; 2005 Waterhole Aboriginal Art, Danks Street, Syndey.

Source includes: Aboriginal Artists, dictionary of biographies by Janusz B. Kreczmanski and Margo Birnberg (This illustrated dictionary of 446 pages showing many photographs of artists and paintings is available from Doongal).