Tjimpuna Williams — 'Tjukula Tjuta', 2024

Tjukula Tjuta (many rockholes) "People go out to the rockholes to get kapi (water) we know the names from a long time ago for all the rockholes, when it rains, we know there is big kapi in the rockhole and we can get fresh water.”

In this pot Tjimpuna depicts Minyma Tjuta (many women) sitting around the rockholes, with lots of children. They are drinking the water and telling stories. For the Pitjantjatjara people living in the central and western desert, knowledge of the water sources was crucial to survival. The deep familiarity with their country ensured constant sources of water and food could be found and this intimate understanding of the landscape continues today.

'Tjukula' means rock-holes or waterholes. Anangu often protect these water sources by using rocks and spinifex to form a barrier to animals and, in more recent times, to protect from feral and stock animals.

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Community: Ernabella (Pukatja), SA

Tjimpuna has worked across several mediums including painting, linocut prints and batik, but her chosen medium is ceramics. For 20 years she worked out of the Ernabella Arts where she honed her craft before joining the APY Adelaide Studio in 2020. In 2012 she was a finalist in the Indigenous Ceramic Art Awards at Shepparton Art Museum. 

Tjimpuna uses traditional patterns that relate to rockhole (jukula) or sand dune (tali), and also paints the Tjukurpa of her mother’s country - Piltati, near Kanpi in the APY Lands. Tjimpuna's artwork has been included in a number of exhibitions both here and overseas. Her artwork has been acquired for the collections of the National Museum of Australia, Australian National Gallery, Queensland Art Gallery and Museum of Ethnology, Osaka, Japan

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Iriwi Arts Centre and Craft Victoria 

Iwiṟi was established by Aṉangu in 2018, many of whom had been forced to move to Adelaide due to chronic health conditions and lack of services in their home communities. Living far from their traditional homelands, Anangu were concerned about the cultural and social isolation they were experiencing and saw a need to act.  Iwiri was formed initially to help retain, promote and transmit Anangu culture and language through the areas of arts, language, knowledge and community. Since then Iwiṟi has grown rapidly into an organization that delivers a range of programs that aim to strengthen and advance Aṉangu wellbeing.

Iriwi's Artists range from highly experienced elders and knowledge custodians through to younger emerging artists. Iwiri studio is used by Anangu artists living in Adelaide as well as artists from the APY lands who are visiting for health or social reasons. The Art Studio has a strong ceramics and painting program and is experimenting with textiles.

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Material: Clay sculptural vessel

Dimensions:  385 x 127 x 127mm

Cat. no: 412-23