Alma Nungarrayi Granites / Star (Seven Sisters) Dreaming (12C)

c. 1955 – 2017

“I want my art to tell the story of my ancestors and be able to show the world my culture and my traditions.”

Alma Nungarrayi Granites lived in Yuendumu, an Aboriginal community located Northwest of Alice Springs. She was the daughter of Paddy Japaljarri Sims (Dec) and Bessie Nakamarra Sims (Dec) both founding artists of Warlukurlangu Artists. She painted a large array of stories all of which were passed down to her from her father and generations before him. All her paintings tell creation stories that relate to the artist’s traditional country. Alma passed away after a long illness in August 2017.

Alma was married with 4 children and many, many grandchildren and spent much of her later life helping to take care of them. Alma attended the local school and then continued her studies at Kormilda College in Darwin. She then finished a Teacher’s assistant diploma through Batchelor College and worked at Yuendumu school teaching for many years.

Alma commenced painting in 1987. In 2007 she decided to explore her painting skill in more depth; she started working at the art centre every day to produce a body of work that expanded her knowledge of the dreaming (Jukurrpa) as well as the development of her unique technical artist’s style. She was a strong participant of Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation and exhibited in group exhibitions nationally and internationally, culminating in two solo shows, one in Singapore in 2010 and one in Germany in 2011. She also had solo shows each year within Australia.

Alma was without doubt one of the shining stars of the Aboriginal Art movement, a formidable artist with grace and dignity who will be missed by all.

Selected Collections
– Holmes a Court Collection
– South Australian Museum
– Artbank
– Burkhardt-Felder Museum, Switzerland
– ARTCOL Collection, Seattle USA

The Star (Seven Sisters) Dreaming depicts the story of the seven ancestral Napaljarri sisters who are found in the night sky today in the cluster of seven stars in the constellation Taurus, more commonly known as the Pleiades. The Pleiades are seven women of the Napaljarri skin group and are often depicted in paintings of this Dreaming carrying the Jampijinpa man ‘wardilyka’ (the bush turkey) who is in love with the Napaljarri-warnu and who represents the Orion’s Belt cluster of stars.

Jukurra-jukurra, the morning star, is a Jakamarra man who is also in love with the seven Napaljarri sisters and is often shown chasing them across the night sky. In a final attempt to escape from the Jakamarra the Napaljarri-warnu turned themselves into fire and ascended to the heavens to become stars. The custodians of the Napaljarri-warnu Jukurrpa are Japaljarri/Jungarrayi men and Napaljarri/Nungarrayi women.