"Tingarri"
 80 cm x 124 cm     Acrylic on Linen     2000

$Aud 13,500 + GST 10% for sales in Australia
export  price  $Aud 13,500  SOLD
 

Dreaming

During mythological times a group of men camped at the site of llyingaugau near the secret cave site of Mitukatjirri, south east of the Kintore community. The dotted lines through this work represent the artists country where the spears are collected, the painting also represents the spears which the men are straightening. This is done by slightly warming the spear over a fire and straightening while it is warm.

The colours represent the various stages of preparation and curing of the spears. This also represent the country where the spears are collected.

The men were preparing their spears as they heard of a possible confrontation with a group of men from the Tjikari area further north. The Pintupi and other Central Desert tribesmen adopt a payback system which insures a conflict will go on for years after the initial encounter.

Due to the sacred aspects of this Dreaming no further details were given by the artist.

Turkey Tolson Jupurrula

Turkey Tolson’s great importance as a desert artist resides in the fact that he was one of the original painting men at Papunya and in his status as an elder with significant scared ceremonial knowledge.  

Born about 1938 near Haast’s Bluff, Turkey genuinely deserves the epithet ‘living master’. His work is held by major state galleries throughout Australia and his paintings, like the work that of many other painters represented in this exhibition, has been shown in many venues throughout the western world. As this exhibition opens his work may be seen in significant collections Italy, Germany, Great Britain and the United States of America. He really represents the notion of ‘emergence from the desert’ better than any living Aboriginal painter. Turkey Tolson was one of the youngest of the painters who worked with Geoff Bardon in 1971 and his continued involvement with the painting movement since that time, coupled with his brilliantly developed image making will assure him of a place in any history Aboriginal art in this country. 

Not that Turkey really cares about the kudos and ‘fame’ which comes with being a noted painter. As Christopher Anderson pointed out when he referred to Andy Warhol and Turkey Tolson in the same breath, 

‘These are not artists on the make …. Turkey is not a part of that whole career structure. 
These fellows don't care if they have an exhibition anywhere'. (Christopher Anderson in 
‘Market of Dreams’, video documentary, 1989 ?)This does not mean, however, that Turkey is not proud of his achievements or his heritage.

The artist’s family followed a life which combined tradition with the benefits of white settlements. Prior to his birth Turkey’s family had moved between traditional country near Kintore and the Hermannsburg Mission. After his birth the family lived in the vicinity of Haasts Bluff which is where Turkey grew up and went through initiation ceremonies to manhood in the late 1950’s.

Following the death of his first wife in 1983, Turkey moved further to the west to his country known as Yuwalki, south east of Kintore. This place has become the ‘new Papunya’ and in the 1990’s, mainly because of his presence there, bears the mantle of a very significant desert art community.
Although he has painted from time to time in a more figurative manner, Turkey’s art now is based on pure symbolism. He has been quoted as saying that, 

 "I think about my work and my painting. I think about my father's place and I put it in my memory. I think about how I'm going to paint. I started painting a long time ago. Different styles, each time a different style."

However, for the past twenty years he has mostly painted in the classical, traditional Pintupi style which is linear and confined to repetitious circles or squares denoting sites or events in the desert. In this regard he may be considered together with another famous Pitupi painter, Ronnie Tjampitjinpa, both of whom have been consistent contributors to the desert art movement over the past 29 years. Tolson’s style generates great aesthetic appeal. Nevertheless their prime purpose is to instruct in a deep and tacit way about the earth, its creation and its creators, and events which have shaped the artist’s personal world. 

A ‘Turkey Tolson’ can only be painted by Turkey Tolson. Some career highlights for Turkey include him being Artist-in-Residence at Flinders Univesity in 1979 and his lengthy appearance in the documentary “Market of Dreams”. In June 1999 Turkey’s work delighted Melbourne audiences in the exhibition ‘Authenticity’ at Melbourne’s Aboriginal Art Galleries of Australia. The show, based entirely on his work, confirmed that Turkey Tolson is one of the genuine masters of desert art and that his reputation is now on the very highest plane. His dreamings include Tingari Creation Cycles, Mitukutjarrayi Dreamings from his traditional country near Kintore Snake, Emu, Bushfire and ‘Laying of Spears at Illyingaungau”. The latter dreaming has produced paintings which have taken Turkey’s art to a new level of aesthetic delectation. 

Turkey pased away in 2001, he will be sorely missed by the Deeb and Hollow families and those of us who had the pleasure of knowing and working with him during his painting career. 

Collections include Holmes a Court, National Gallery of Australia, Victoria Centre for Performing Arts, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Art Gallery of South Australia, National Museum of Australia, University of Western Australia, Darwin Supreme Court, Flinders University and Queensland Art Gallery. His art has been exhibited extensively in exhibitions throughout the western world.

© Jinta Desert Art 2001