Rover Thomas Joolama Indigenous Australian (Kukatja/Wangkajunga), ca. 1926-1998

Acclaimed as a cultural leader and the seminal figure in establishing the East Kimberley School, Rover Thomas holds a primary place in the history of the Indigenous art movement.

Rover settled at Warmun in 1973, the year before Cyclone Tracy laid waste to Darwin. On the morning of Christmas Eve 1974, the cyclone moved directly over Darwin with wind gusts reaching 240 kilometers per hour. Ninety percent of homes were destroyed or badly damaged, and over sixty-five lives were lost. It was the inspiration for this striking and dramatic work. The fearsome winds started from the direction of Darwin harbour, flattened all buildings and trees in the city, moved across the Kimberley's and finally ran out at Port Headland on the West Australian coast.

This important work was created during Rover's extremely well documented visit to Melbourne in June 1995. It is characterized by spacious planes of textured ochre. The prominent black path is a storm traveling from the east. It gains in strength as the Willy Willys fuse together to create a frightening wind tearing through the Great Sandy Desert. The concentric circle represents the artist's encampment. The white dots serve only to create emphasis or to draw the eye along pathways of time and movement, following the forms of the land. The painting is dynamic yet contemplative and sombre. The predominant use of black conveys a startling, strangely emotional, intensity. The viewer observes the unfolding events whilst becoming immersed in an ancient and timeless landscape.

Rover Thomas died on April 11, 1998, and was posthumously awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Western Australia. The power of his work is reflected in the attention it commanded over his twenty-year career. Since his first exhibition in 1987, there has been a constant demand for his paintings, which are now represented in all major galleries in Australia. He is recognized as one of the most important figures in contemporary Australian Aboriginal Art. His legacy is a substantial body of significant paintings which provide an enduring, unique, insight into the spiritual landscape of the Kimberley region and the human relationships and events within it.

Please note that all First Nations Art is created from a so called ‘Birds Eye’ view. This means that the paintings can be hung either horizontally as well as vertically.