Image: Adrian Jurra Tjungurrayi, YUNALA 2023, Synthetic polymer paint. Image courtesy of the Artist, Papunya Tula Artists and Alcaston Art Gallery.

Painted Country presents the work of five Australian First Nations artists – Nellie Ngampa Coulthard, Brenda Napaltjarri, Clara Napurrula, Rene Sundown and Adrian Jurra Tjungurrayi. Drawing upon their rich artistic, cultural, and ancestral knowledge, each artist paints unique depictions of Country, refracted through memory and lived experience. Using restrained colour palettes, the artists each capture the subtle shifts of light, native flora, ancestral stories, and culturally significant sites across the vast desert regions of Western Australia, South Australia, and the Northern Territory.

With special thanks to the Artists; Iwantja Arts, South Australia; Papunya Tula Artists, Northern Territory; and Alcaston Gallery, Melbourne, who partnered with Manningham Art Gallery to curate this major exhibition.