Patju Presley

Born: Etari, near Wataru

Date: 1940’s

Life: Semi-nomadic

Language: Pitjantjatjara



Dreamtime Stories:

Wati Kipara (Bush Turkey)

Wati Kutjara (Two Water-Snake Men)

Minyma Kutjara (Two Sisters)





Introduction

Patju Presley is a highly respected law man and artist at Irrunytju. He was born at Eltari in the 1940s, and belongs to the Pitjantjatjara language and cultural group. From his early years as a child he lived a traditional semi-nomadic lifestyle learning on his journeys through the lands, the sacred law and ceremony and how to survive in these harsh environments.  



Patju combines both his traditional cultural beliefs and practices with those of Christianity in his paintings. He first encountered the Bible teachings from a missionary, who traveled through the desert on a camel giving out tea and damper as he delivered his sermons. Patju later attended Ernabella mission where learnt how to read and write and trained to be a preacher. He has since delivered services at the Irrunytju Church. Apart from painting, Patju carves ceremonial objects and hunts kangaroo (malu), emu (kalaya), bush turkey (kipara) and rabbit. His wife is painter Ivy Laidlaw.



Patju’s sellout exhibition in 2007 at Agathon Galleries confirms his standing as one of the greatest South Western Desert artists of our time.





Dreamtime Stories

In his paintings, Patju refers to many of the tjukurpa of the country around Irrunytju including the Wati Kipara (Bush Turkey), Wati Kutjara (Two Water-Snake Men) and Minyma Kutjara (Two Sisters). His images are symbolic visual maps of his tjukurpa. They represent on one level, his ancestor spirits and their epic journeys and creation stories for which he is a custodian. On the other, the paintings refer to his country and its important sacred sites and rock holes.





Painting Description

Patju’s paintings have the elegant internal harmony and sensuous colour of eastern tapestry construction. True to his cultural inspiration, they are mind maps, exquisitely abstracted visual representations of his lands and dreamtime stories.  For each he engages in a very careful and detailed construction, using colour and dotted sequence to seamlessly weave together interlocking patches of intensely dotted and over laid colour.  Intriguingly, up to 4 colours may be applied into one section at a time. Sometimes the composition is informally laid-out, at others a geometric order is more closely observed. What is fascinating about his approach, however is the subtly with which the colour is applied and the creation of a scintillating viewing experience.





Collections

•    Art Gallery of Western Australia

•    National Gallery of Australia

•    National Gallery of Victoria





Exhibitions

2009 Agathon Galleries Sydney, Melbourne

2008 Harrison Galleries Sydney

2008 Agathon Galleries Sydney, Melbourne

2007 Patju Stanley Presley Solo Exhibition, Agathon Galleries, VIC

2006 Irrunytju Arts: Senior artists from Irrunytju WA, Raft Artspace, NT

2004 Melbourne Art Fair, Vivien Anderson Gallery, VIC

2005 New paintings from Irrunytju, Artplace, WA

2004 Irrunytju Wati, Aboriginal and Pacific Gallery, NSW

2003 Watiku Tjukurpa: Irrunytju Senior Men, Aboriginal and Pacific Gallery, NSW

2003 Irrunytju Art Auction, Viviven Anderson Gallery, VIC (Cromwells Auctioneers – NSW)

2002 Wati Tjilpiku Tjukurpa: Irrunytju Senior Men, Aboriginal and Pacific Gallery, NSW





Bibliography

Susan McCulloch, McCulloch’s Contemporary Aboriginal Art: The Complete Guide, McCulloch & McCulloch Australian Art Books, Fitzroy, Vic., 3065, 2008

Emily McCulloch, New Beginnings: Classic Paintings from the Corrigan Collection of 21st Century Aboriginal Art, McCulloch & McCulloch Australian Art Books, Fitzroy, Vic., 2008

Nicholas Rothwell, “Remember Wingellina – the life and death of an art phenomenon – Dust to dust”, The Australian, 23/8/2003, pp1