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Oct 11, 2009
Janet Forbes Images
Janet Forbes
Janet Forbes, daughter of Fred Forbes, the founder of the Blackstone settlement. Janet has been working with the natural colours, ochres and whites and her works come across with a sense of reverence for her country. Hidden amongst the white tips of the spinifex grass you may make out a goanna, sacred obects, hunting tools, and special sites. A circle depicts a claypan, the zigzags and squares make the ridges of the Blackstone ranges, other markings depicts the people gathering for a ceremony. Blackstone is littered with purposeful places and hidden secrets. Janet marks out these places, often 'rubbing out' an area and starting over if she is not happy with their placement, a true perfectionist. A work is not complete untill it passes over Janet's discerning eye and when she is ready, she will set the knowledge free into the market place. Papulankutja's secrets are in safe hands with Janets watchfull eye.
Oct 5, 2009
Sep 7, 2009
Carlton Isaac Reid
Second eldest son to Cliff Reid, Carlton has painted a very serious dreaming story. In the story a father would go hunting and when he got back his son would tell lies such as that his mother and he had eaten a fat goanna while the father was out hunting. He had been lying many times, so much that his mother punished him, taking him away from his fathers country to never return again. The white lines represent the tracks of the boy over the sand dune country. This story has similarities to 'the boy that cried wolf', but a more ancient telling of the tale.
Carlton is a contemporary young man reflected by his painting style. Innovative with technique, using thick, bold brush strokes opting for a 3 inch brush while maintaining the cultural colours and ochres used traditionally. This technique is descriptive of the power he wants to push forward in his art. He strips back all the details and the important aspects and the power of the story remains. Carlton was brought up with strong bush memories, growing up in the then young Blackstone community. He is 32 years old, educated in the Blackstone school and he is now a strong leader in his community with contemporary ideas and concepts to better his community. Carlton Reid is a contemporary painter while maintaining cultural knowledge and power handed down to him as the next generation Papulankutja artists.
Jul 22, 2009
Narelle Holland
Narelle has painted country where the emu was hunted. The men would go to the rock hole to spear the emu, using stillness as their weapon. The first layer of paint marks the country and its landmarks, the second layer, a delicate layering of lush cream and white dotting depict the spinifex which camouflages the country. The men have been painted with the raw brush strokes contained in the first layer and the second laying of spinifex and dotting cloaks the men, keeping them hidden from the viewer and the Emu they hunt.
Jun 30, 2009
Paint 'Right Way'
Thomas Reid known to Blackstone as 'T.R.' has stepped up as a painter, taking on the rights to stories given to him by his father Cliff Reid. His father, the number one male artists in Blackstone with a solo show in August in Melbourne with William Mora Galleries and a very successful painter, paints what he knows. Cliff paints stories he was told and paints them 'his way', the same way they painted those stories on Singing Rock, the same way those paintings have been painted for many years, raw gestures, symbols, dreaming tracks of the elders and the beings from the dreaming. Thomas is the eldest son of Cliff and Ruby Reid, and the responsibilities of being the eldest are to remember the stories and tell them 'right way'. Cliff told his son 'paint slow way', to make every mark count. The figures will then have character, the lines will have meanings and the story will be told. The image shown here is of a tribal battle. One side is stronger than the other. The strong side have their spears held up high, the figures seem taller, bigger, just like he was told they were in the story. On the weak side some are dying, spears are pierced into their legs, stomachs and heads. The battle is carefully choreographed like a World War 2 Movie, the men falling down, younger warriors are fighting amongst their elders, and there is no hope, they will lose. Thomas tells us that the battle was fought in the dreaming, a battle to warn us of future wars and the seriousness of their consequences? A warning to future generations maybe? Dreaming stories tell us the 'right way to live'. As a human culture all over the world we haven't learned from our own fables and dreaming stories, but did Thomas' ancestors learn to live in peace and not war, did they listen to their own stories? All we can do is learn the 'right way' and hope that future generations are listening.
Jun 15, 2009
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