Aboriginal Fine Arts Gallery

Paddy Stewart Japaljarri

Paddy Stewart Japaljarri

Born: c. 1940
Region: Tanami Desert
Community Centre: Yuendumu
Outstation or Country: Yuelamu, Mt Denison area
Language Bloc: Ngarrkic, Arandic
Language: Warlpiri, Anmatyerre
Social Affiliations: Japaljarri subsection

Medium/ Form: Acrylic paint on canvas

Subjects and Themes:
Marlu (Kangaroo), Janganpa (Possum), Yarla (Yam), Warlawurru (Eagle), Wardapi (Goanna),
Yajukurlu (Bush cabbage), Jarlji (Frog), Jajirdi (Native Cat), , Ngatijirri (Budgerigar),
Wakulyarri (Banded Rock Wallaby), Yanyilingi (Native Fuschia), Pingirri (Meat ant).

Awards:
2001, Telstra Work On Paper Award, The 16th National Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander Art Award, Telstra

Commisions:
1991
Prof. H Antes, Berlin, commissioned a 7x 3m canvas by fourty two of Yuendumu's artists.
The painting forms part of the 1993 European touring exhibition 'Aratjara - Australian
Aboriginal Art' curated by Kunstsammlung Nordrhein Westfalen Dusseldorf West Germany.

2000
Robert Kaplan and Margaret Levi in collaboration with the Seatle Art Museum commissioned
a 6' x 8' painting by Jack Jakamarra Ross, Paddy Japaljarri Sims and Paddy Japaljarri
Stewart. This 'Pamapardu Jukurrpa' (Flying Ant Dreaming) comes from a site called Yuwinji.
Jack is one of the main kirda (owners) and the Paddy Sims and Paddy Stewart are
kurdungurlu (like police) for this story. As part of this commission a video was produced
documenting the creation of the painting, the story and various attempts to reach the site.

Collections held:
South Australian Museum, Adelaide
Seatle Art Museum, U.S.A.
Duncan Kentish
Private Collections
Art Gallery and Museum, Kelvin Grove, Glasgow, Scotland

Group Exhibitions:
1985, Araluen, Alice Springs
1986, Editions Gallery, Perth, Araluen Arts Centre, Alice Springs
1987, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne Chapman Gallery, Canberra
1988, F.O.E. Community Art Space, Melbourne
Bellas Gallery, Brisbane Hilton Hotel (Nadoc Week), Adelaide, Dreamtime Gallery, Perth
'Dreamings. The Art of Aboriginal Australia' Asia Society, New York, U.S.A.
F.O.E. Community Art Space, Melbourne
1989, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France, Hogarth Gallery of Dreams, Sydney
1990, 'Dreamings' South Australian Museum, Adelaide, South Australian Museum Shop,
Adelaide Festival
1991, 'Aboriginal Art And Spirituality', Canberra, Albert Hall, Canberra
1992, The Haven Gallery, Melbourne, Emerald Hill, Melbourne
1993, Adelaide Town Hall, Adelaide (Pacific Arts Symposium), 'Aratjara - Art of the
First Australians' Kunstsammlung Nordrhein Westfalen, Dusseldorf, West Germany,
'Artajara', Haywood Gallery, London, UK, Bellas Gallery, Brisbane, Sutton Gallery,
Melbourne, 'Tjukurrpa, Desert Dreamings - a survey of central desert art 1971-1993'
Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, Hogarth Gallery of Dreams, Sydney
Chapman Gallery, Canberra, Philip Bacon Galleries, Brisbane, H. B Starr Gallery, Florida
1994, The Assembly Hall of the Territorial Parliament, Tahiti, French Polynesia,
Palm Beach Community College, Lake Worth, Florida, Interamerican Art Gallery, Miami,
Florida, 'Aratjara', National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Hogarth Gallery, Sydney
1995, Kloosterkazerne, Breda INMA Foundation, Amsterdam.
1996, Hogarth Gallery, Sydney, Lake Macquarie Art Gallery
1997, Art Gallery NSW, Festival of the Dreaming, Ngapa Sand Painting, Sydney
1999, 'Fighting for Culture', Indigenart, The Mossenson Gallery, Perth, W.A. Desert
Mob Show, Araluen Centre, Alice Springs.
2000, Print exhibition, Bellas Gallery, Brisbane, "jangku yinyi", Carey Baptist
Grammar School, Melbourne, Kurawari, Desart Gallery, Sydney, Hogarth Gallery, Sydney
Gallery Gabrielle Pizzi, Melbourne, Paintings and Prints, Northern Terrirtory
University, Darwin
'Wayuta', The Desart Janganpa Gallery, Alice Springs, 'Unhinged' Araluen Cultural
Centre, Alice Springs
2001, Framed Gallery Darwin, Bellas Gallery Brisbane, Hogarth Gallery Sydney,
Yuendumu Door Etchings' National Gallery of Australia, 18th National Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander Art Award
2002, Indigenart Perth, "The Warlukurlangu Collection" Parliament House Canberra,
Chapman Gallery Canberra, 'Desert Mob' Araluen Art Centre and Gallery Alice Springs,
Bellas Gallery Brisbane
2003, Yilpinji, Love, Magic and Ceremony, Outback Gallery, Darling Harbour. Sydney. Australia.
Yilpinji, Love, Magic and Ceremony, Darwin Entertainment Centre Gallery, Darwin, NT.
Yilpinji, Love, Magic and Ceremony, Alcheringa Gallery, Victoria, British Columbia,
Canada.

Select Bibliography:

Caruana, W., 1993, Aboriginal Art, Thames and Hudson, London. (C)

Crumlin, R., (ed.), 1991, Aboriginal Art and Spirituality, Collins Dove, North
Blackburn, Victoria. (C)

Diggins, L. (ed.), 1989, A Myriad of Dreaming: Twentieth Century Aboriginal Art,
exhib. cat., Malakoff Fine Art Press, North Caulfield, Victoria.

Johnson, V., 1994, The Dictionary of Western Desert Artists, Craftsman House, East
Roseville, New South Wales. (C)

Sutton, P. (ed.), 1988, Dreamings: the Art of Aboriginal Australia, Viking,
Ringwood, Victoria. (C)

Artlink Volume 20 No. 1 Reconciliation? Indigenous art for the 21st Century 2000 p. 87.

Warlukurlangu Artists Yuendumu Doors Kuruwarri Australian Institute of Aboriginal
Studies, Canberra 1987.

Crumlin. R. (ed.) Aboriginal Art And Spirituality. 1991.

Morphy, H. 'Aboriginal Art' Phaidon Press Limited, London,1998.

Morphy, H. and Boles, M.S. (eds.) 'Art from the land' University of Virginia Press,
Virginia, U.S.A., 1999.

Details

Aboriginal artist Paddy Stewart Japaljarri is from Mungapunju, just south of Yuendumu.
When he was a young man he was a station worker at Mt Allen, Mt Dennison and up the top end.
He worked as a chef in Papunya, hence his nickname 'Cookie'.For a very long time now he
has been living in Yuendumu. Cookie worked at the Yuendumu school teaching young kids,
both kardiya and yapa (non aboriginal and aboriginal). He's taught painting, jukurrpa
(dreaming), tracking (dingo, kangaroo, goanna etc...), how to make wax for the sand
painting, dancing, making boomerangs and many other important culture traditions. Each
day Paddy drove the school bus that collected the kids. He was also involved in the
council here and in Night Patrol. Night Patrol has been absolutely invaluable as a yapa
(aboriginal) policing body. Cookie has been drawing and painting for a long time, including
working on the Yuendumu School Doors. He is presently the chairman for the Warlukurlangu
Artists Committee.

In 1988 Paddy Stewart was selected by The Power Gallery, Sydney University to travel to
Paris with five other Warlpiri men from Yuendumu to create a ground painting installation
at the exhibition 'Magiciens de la Terre' at the Centre Georges Pompidou. The trip took
place in May 1989 and the painting was received with world wide acclaim.

In 2000 Paddy Stewart undertook to produce 30 etchings of the original Yuendumu Doors in
collaboration with Paddy Sims and under the guidance of Basil Hall, Northern Editions
Printmaker (Northern Territory University). The first print of the etchings was all on one
page and had its debut alongside the Yuendumu Doors while they were exhibited in Alice
Springs. The etchings in a set were launched in 2001, to great aclaim with the set winning
the Telstra, 16th National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, for works on
paper.

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