Arnhemland art

Situated in the tropical north of the country, Arnhemland and its neighbouring territories count among the richest regions, culturally speaking. Arnhemland covers a surface of about 150 000 square kilometres and hosts a variety of landscapes and climate zones. Particularly spectacular are the western sandstone plains of the Kombolgie formations, with their thousands of cliffs and reefs, the uncountable rivers and sweetwater lagoons, the Monsun jungle. The forests and the sand banks, the beaches and islands. Some of the stone drawings on Arnhemland cliffs could be dated to an age of over 50.000 years

Aboriginal people had been living these regions without coming into contact with other cultures until the mid-17th century. It was then, that sailors from Indonesia and further north kept appearing to harvest trepang (sea cucumber) , a Chinese aphrodisiac delicacy. This harvest took place in the seas of north-east Arnhemland from around January to May each year and the regular visitations led to an exchange of goods and artefacts and the establishment of ongoing relationships. In contrast to the Central and Western Desert people, the Arnhemland inhabitants were also less restricted by the Australian government and presence of the missionaries.

Local people were able to continue being close to their land and to maintain their systems of belief, while at times incorporating Christianity.

Arnhemland became an Aboriginal reserve in 1931, although non-aboriginal visitors were required to obtain permits from 1918.

All in all, the art of Arnhemland has had a smooth transition from the traditional to the modern. Images portrayed for generations on cave walls and bark stripped from the stringybark tree have been translated onto today’s materials, predominantly bark, but also paper and board.

Ochre is still the most often used paint, although some areas are experimenting to a limited extend with acrylics and gouaches. The art of Arnhem Land can be grouped loosely into that of four geographic areas: the west from the East-Alligator River around Gunbalanya (Oenpelli) and Jabiru; the central west around the coastal settlement of Maningrida, the central east between Maningrida and Ramingining; and the far east around Yirrkala The Tiwi of Bathurst and Melville islands and the artists of the far eastern area around Ngukurr also have quite distinctive artistic styles.

One of the most striking differences between the art of western and central Arnhem Land (Gunbalanya, Milingimbi, Ramingining) and that of the east (Yirrkala, Blue Mud Bay) is that that, in the latter, the infill lines or crosshatching generally covers the whole canvas, whereas in the art of central and western areas, crosshatching is generally confined within outlined images.

As far as artefacts are concerned, Arnhemland is most famous for its bark paintings, its wooden ceremonial sculptures and its woven goods. Themes, motives and techniques slightly vary regionally.