Description

Details

• Limited edition screen-print on paper
• Edition: 99
• Editioned: November, 1998
• Size: 42 x 62 cm (image), 55 x 75 cm (paper)
• Paper: TBC
• Printer & Studio: TBC

About the artist: Djardi Ashley

AFFILIATION: Rittharrngu people

REGION: Central Arnhem Land

LOCATION: Ramingining

ARTIST’S COUNTRY: Ngilipitji

LANGUAGE: Rittharrngu

SUB-SECTION: Burrulang

CLAN: Wagilag

MOIETY: Dhuwa

Biography

Djardi Ashley was born in 1950 in the bush at the top of the Glyde River in the land called Djilpin country (his grandmother’s country). For most of his life he worked as a stockman all over the Northern Territory and Arnhem Land and retired from that work in 1982.

In 1978 he married George Milpurrurru’s sister, Dorothy Djukululu, and in 1983 they moved back to Mulgurrum outstation where Ashley concentrated on painting. He mostly painted the totemic Ngambi stone spear heads. These are made at a site called Ngilipitji southeast of Ramingining. These spearheads are associated with the Wagilag Sisters’ story, an important Aboriginal creation myth.

As he says: “My brother Ray showed me these pictures. This painting I do comes from the Dreamtime. We remember what our father and grandfather taught us so we can hold onto our culture and show our children. This Ngambi is very important, our luku (footprints) for us. It’s body painting for us”.

In 1987 Djardi won First Prize at the National Aboriginal Art Award, NT Museum of Arts and Sciences, Darwin.

His work is characterised by sophisticated interlocking triangular designs in a complex composition, representing spearheads. He passed away in 2016.

Bula’bula Arts is an locally owned and governed non-profit artists’ association in Ramingining in Central Arnhem Land, 400 kilometres east of Darwin. It was founded more than 35 years ago and its artists have become world renowned for their paintings, sculptures and fibre works that have been featured in exhibitions around the world. Djardi was a very significant member of Bula’bula Arts for more than two decades.

Provenance

This edition was created in partnership with Bula’bula Arts in Ramingining and commissioned by Anne Phelan and John Clark of Framed Gallery, the premier and groundbreaking fine art and craft gallery that operated in Darwin from 1984-2017. The artist was paid at the time of printing.

This artwork was distributed by the Australian Art Print Network.