Twined mat by Djibugula Dhyagunga, 2003.
Image: Rodney Start
Source: Injalak Arts & Crafts Association Inc.
Women’s fibre art from Western Arnhem Land.
At the opening night of Twined Together – Kunmadj Njalehnjaleken, one of the artists was asked what she thought of the exhibition. In a soft, shy voice she answered, ‘Very proud.’
The opening was a crowning achievement for the fourteen women - many of whom had never been further than Darwin before - who had journeyed from the Northern Territory to attend.
Located in the Jumbunna space at Melbourne Museum’s Bunjilaka, the exhibition brings together and promotes the historical and contemporary fibre art of women from Western Arnhem Land.
The baskets, bags and mats on display are primarily made by coiling, knotting and twining local plant material, such as the leaves of the pandanus palm. Vibrant colours are achieved via dyes sourced from local vegetation, with the striking purples and pinks made from a plant that grows only in the sandstone escarpment during the wet season.
Initiated by the Injalak Arts and Craft Centre and developed in association with Museum Victoria, the exhibition opened to the public on 13 May and closes on 4 December. It will then go on tour throughout Victoria and interstate, promoting Kunmadj Njalehnjaleken, Kunwinju words which loosely translate as ‘everything to know about fibre.’