TJANPI DESERT WEAVERS

TJANPI DESERT WEAVERS (tjanpi meaning grass) is an award-winning, Indigenous governed and directed social enterprise of the Ngaanyatjarra, Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara Women’s Council (NPYWC).Tjanpi empowers more than 500 Aṉangu (Aboriginal) women, across a 350,000sqkm area of the tri-state region of NT, SA and WA to create innovative, nationally- acclaimed fibre artwork, earn an income to look after their families and remain
in their communities on Country.

For 25 years Tjanpi Desert Weavers have yielded a massive economic impact in the region; providing an income stream for Aṉangu women, injecting valuable external funds into the local economy and providing an alternative to welfare dependency. It also made it’s mark on the national arts landscape with artists winning the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award in 2005, participating in high-profile exhibitions such as the Venice Bienniale in 2015, the award-winning Songlines: Tracking the Seven Sisters exhibition at the National Museum of Australia in 2017, and extensive acquisitions by national and international institutions.