Barbara
Weir
Anmatyerre/Alyawarr (born ca.1945)
My Mother's Country, 1999/2000
synthetic polymer paint on linen
181 x 121 cm
inscribed verso with artist's name and catalogue number
Provenance
Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, NT, cat.no. MB 1047; accompanied by original
certificate of authenticity and colour image of the artist with the painting
Private Collection, VIC
Documentation reads
This painting describes Barbara’s mother’s country, Atnwengerrp
and associated Dreamtime dance (ceremony). Anthep means women’s dance.
The women paint their bodies, dance, sing and pay homage to their country.
As they dance, they stir up the dust and the rock of the earth, creating
trails that are firmly imprinted in the earth. Barbara illustrates these
trails by the three parallel lines running top to bottom of this painting.
Submerged under the fine dot pattern are descriptions of landforms and
bush forms. The dense shaped areas describe landmarks of cultural significance
– riverbed, riverbank, rock formations or caves. Variations in the
colour of dot work describe flora and fauna in different seasons.