Organized by the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection

Dr. Gawirriṉ Gumana AO | Fish Trap at Gäṉgaṉ

Dr. Gawirriṉ Gumana AO

Fish Trap at Gäṉgaṉ, 1996

Gäṉgaṉ Buykuŋur

Clan

Dhaḻwaŋu

More Info

During the waŋarr (ancestral times), the great creation beings Barama, Ḻany’tjuŋ, and Gal-parrimun created a fish-trap in the sacred waters of Gulutji, near Gäṉgän. Rock formations at the site are the remnants of this original fish-trap. In this painting, Gawirriṉ has shown Yolŋu driving fish through this natural barrage. They are surrounded by three important totems of the Dhalwaŋu clan: wurran (the diver duck), minhala (the long-necked tortoise), and dhakuwa (the crayfish). Behind them are patterns indicating different states of the Dhalwaŋu clan’s waters, from freshwater to brackish.


– Henry Skerritt and Kade McDonald

Additional Information

Decade

1996

Medium

Natural pigments on eucalyptus bark

Dimensions (IN)

66 5/8 x 30 3/4

Dimensions (CM)

169.2 x 78.1

Credit

Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia. Gift of John W. Kluge, 1997. 1996.0035.001.

Narrative

Dhaḻwaŋu

The Dhaḻwaŋu clan belongs to the Yirritja moiety. The most important Dhaḻwaŋu songlines relate to...

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Location

Gäṉgaṉ

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Location

1990s

Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka Centre began the 1990s in a phase of rebuilding. By the end of...

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About The Artist(s)

Clan

Dhaḻwaŋu

Artist Dates

c.1935-2016

Alternative Names

Gawurin, Gouarin, Gawarrin, Gawirrin, Garwirin, Gawerin, Joe

Dr. Gawirriṉ Gumana AO

Gawirriṉ Gumana was one of the most significant Yolŋu leaders of modern times. In 1992, he was ordained a minister of the Uniting Church. In 2002, he won the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, and the following year he was made a member of the Order of Australia. In 2007, he received an honorary doctorate from Charles Darwin University. He was the named plaintiff in the 2008, the High Court case Gumana vs. Northern Territory Government, which first recognized Indigenous sea rights in Australia. In 2009, he was awarded the Red Ochre Award for lifetime services to Indigenous art and culture.