‘A landscape of spinifex rings’ is how this acclaimed senior Indigenous artist from north-west Queensland describes the suspended woven work that forms the centrepiece of her exhibition. Working with Triodia (spinifex), a native grass common to this arid landscape, Shirley Macnamara’s contemporary fibre art stands for generations of traditional knowledge, the resilience of her people, and the need to care for Country. In works comprising spinifex, emu feathers, bone and ochre, the artist draws attention to the environment and the histories concerning her people, including Aboriginal military service. Macnamara’s woven vessel, Nyurruga Muulawaddi, which won the Wandjuk Marika Memorial 3D Award at the 34th Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards in 2017, is a highlight of the exhibition.
Curator: Michele Helmrich
Image: Shirley Macnamara Well of remembering 2016, spinifex, bullock bone cross, emu feathers and fixative, 28.0 x 26.0 x 20.0 cm
