
Emily Kam Kngwarray Indigenous Australian (Anmatyerr), 1910-1996
29.9 x 39.8 inch
This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity
In a final creative flourish, Emily completed 24 small paintings over 3 days in the 2 weeks before she died. The lines and dots that dominated the surface in her previous works vanish into broad, gestural strokes swept across the surface as slabs of strident colours composed in sections. Many are lushly painted, and every movement of the brush is visible in creamy folds of paint over a characteristic black background.
By contrast, one of these last paintings is nearly devoid of colour. Its all-over subtle whitish-beige tints resonate with Kazimir Malevich’s famous painting White on White 1918, in which he was said to have painted himself out of the picture. It was as if she were signing off. Her end was a new beginning.
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.
Provenance
Acquired directly from the artist & family in Utopia, 1996Australian Gallery of Dreamings, Melbourne, Australia
Exhibitions
EMILY: Utopia to Tokyo, The Anzai Gallery, Tokyo, Japan, 2024