"We didn’t have any tents — we lived in shelters made of grass.
When it was raining the grass was roughly thrown together for shelter. That was in the olden time, a long time ago."
Emily Kam Kngwarray is widely regarded as one of the most significant contemporary Australian artists and one of the most celebrated female First Nations painters. Born in Alhalkere, in the Northern Territory, she lived most of her life in the Utopia region. Before becoming an artist, she worked as a camel driver and stockhand, an unusual path for a woman at the time.
Her artistic journey began late in life. At nearly 80 years old, Emily joined the Utopia Women’s Batik Group in 1978 and transitioned to painting in 1988 through a landmark project led by the Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association. Her debut painting, Emu Woman, revealed her immense talent and marked the beginning of a prolific yet brief seven-year painting career.
Emily’s work is known for its vibrant color palettes, abstract forms, and deep connection to her ancestral land and culture. She developed a distinctive style, often referred to as "dump-dump," using layered dots and later, minimalist line paintings inspired by traditional body art. Her celebrated Big Yam Dreaming (1995) exemplifies this evolution.
Her impact transcends national borders. In 2008, a major retrospective in Tokyo drew global acclaim, and her work featured at the 56th Venice Biennale in 2015. In 2025, the Tate Modern will host her first large-scale European solo exhibition, affirming her legacy as a pioneering force in Indigenous Australian art.