REV-26

Roxanne Newberry

Martumili Artists

Title: Kapi (Water)

Acrylic on canvas: 61.4 x 46 x 2.3cm

Depicted in this work are sources of kapi (water) within the artist’s ngurra (home Country, camp), typically represented with circular forms. During the pujiman (traditional, desert dwelling) period, knowledge of water sources was critical for survival, and today Martu Country is still defined in terms of the location and type of water. Each of the hundreds of claypans, rockholes, waterholes, soaks and springs found in the Martu desert homelands is known through life experiences and the recounting of Jukurrpa (Dreaming) narratives by name, location, quality and seasonal availability. This encyclopedic knowledge extends even to the nature and movement of arterial waterways which sustained Martu as they travelled across their Country; hunting and gathering, visiting family and fulfilling ceremonial obligations.