Western Desert Aboriginal art is the contemporary painting movement that began at Papunya, north-west of Alice Springs, in 1971, when senior men translated ceremonial designs and sand drawings into acrylic paintings. It has grown into Australia’s most influential Indigenous art movement, produced today by dozens of communities across the interior of Western Australia, northern South Australia and the south-west corner of the Northern Territory.
Quick Answers
Q: Where did Western Desert art begin? A: Western Desert art began at Papunya, about 240 km north-west of Alice Springs, in 1971, when school teacher Geoffrey Bardon encouraged senior men to paint a school mural using traditional designs. In 1972 the artists founded Papunya Tula Artists, the Aboriginal-owned company that carried the movement to international success.
Q: What area does the Western Desert cover? A: The Western Desert region covers most of the interior of Western Australia, northern South Australia and the south-west corner of the Northern Territory. The communities across this vast area speak related dialects known collectively as the Western Desert language and are frequently connected through marriage and family links.
Q: What do Western Desert paintings depict? A: Most Western Desert paintings depict Tjukurrpa (Dreaming): the ancestral creation stories, ceremonial knowledge and Country of the artist. Iconography such as concentric circles, U-shapes and travelling lines carries these meanings, and many works deliberately veil sacred elements from public view.
Major Western Desert Art Centres
| Art centre | Community | State | Founded | Known for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Papunya Tula Artists | Papunya / Kintore / Kiwirrkurra | NT/WA | 1972 | Birthplace of the movement; Pintupi and Luritja artists |
| Warlukurlangu Artists | Yuendumu | NT | 1985 | Bold, vividly coloured Warlpiri paintings |
| Warlayirti Artists | Balgo (Wirrimanu) | WA | 1987 | Bright acrylics from the Kutjungka region |
| Ikuntji Artists | Haasts Bluff | NT | 1992 | First art centre founded by women in the movement |
| Warakurna Artists | Warakurna | WA | 2005 | Tjukurrpa alongside contemporary and historical storytelling |
| Martumili Artists | Newman (East Pilbara) | WA | 2006 | Martu artists; central to the Canning Stock Route project |
How Did Western Desert Art Begin at Papunya?
The Western Desert painting movement began with Geoffrey Bardon, an Australian school teacher who spent 18 months at the remote settlement of Papunya in the early 1970s. In 1971 Bardon encouraged senior men to paint a school wall using their own designs, and the resulting Honey Ant mural is widely regarded as the movement’s starting point. From modest and very trying beginnings, the movement went on to achieve significant international success, and in 1972 the artists established Papunya Tula Artists, an Aboriginal-owned company that remains active today.
The first paintings from Papunya were a transformation of established forms, rock painting and sand drawing, into an exciting new medium of acrylic on board and canvas. This art became a bond between two cultures and opened the way for greater exploration, understanding and respect for traditional Aboriginal culture. The movement’s first decade also shows the role painting played in helping groups such as the Pintupi return to their traditional homelands.
In the early days, many Papunya paintings were bold in their portrayal of stories, sometimes revealing elements that should not have been left so exposed to outside eyes. Later works became less overtly symbolic as artists moved to protect the more dangerous and sensitive aspects of their culture. Western Desert art has been known ever since for iconography that carries meaning on more than one level.
The style loosened considerably through the 1990s, becoming more free-flowing and more colourful than ever, while Tjukurrpa beings and the artists’ travelled Country remained the principal subject matter.
The Growth of Western Desert Art Centres
In the last few decades there has been a massive increase in art centres across the Western Desert, creating enormous diversity in the art produced. The table above shows the major centres; each represents dozens or hundreds of artists and each has its own recognisable character.
Warakurna Artists, established in 2005 in the Ngaanyatjarra Lands of Western Australia, is a good example of the newer generation. Alongside Tjukurrpa (Dreaming) paintings, Warakurna artists paint historical and contemporary narratives about life in their community, an approach that has made the centre one of the most distinctive in the region.
What Is the Canning Stock Route Collection?
The Canning Stock Route collection is a body of more than 100 paintings created through a project begun in 2006 by FORM and the National Museum of Australia, with the major works painted in 2007. Artists from ten art centres, including Papunya Tula and Martumili, told the story of the 1,850 km stock route through Aboriginal eyes: contact, conflict, survival, departure and return, interpreted through their voices, art and new media.
The National Museum of Australia acquired the collection in 2008, and the landmark exhibition Yiwarra Kuju: The Canning Stock Route (meaning “one road”) opened in 2010. The collection is also a fine example of the freer, more colourful direction Western Desert painting took from the 1990s onward.
A Movement Still Growing
Western Desert art began as a bridge between two cultures and remains one, more than fifty years on. From the first Papunya boards to the newest work coming out of centres like Warakurna and Martumili, the movement continues to evolve while staying grounded in Tjukurrpa and Country.
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