Bernadine Johnson Kemarre / Bush Medicine Ceremony (BJ296)

Bernadine Johnson Kemarre was born in 1974 in the Ltyentye Apurte Community (Santa Teresa), approximately 80km east of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. Raised in a traditional Aboriginal environment, she spent her early years learning cultural knowledge, ceremony and the importance of Country before later attending school in Alice Springs.

Bernadine comes from a strong family of respected Aboriginal artists connected to the Utopia region. Her relatives include well known artists Abie Loy and Josie Petrick Kemarre, and her sister-in-law is acclaimed Central Desert artist Anna Price Petyarre. From a young age, Bernadine was surrounded by painting and storytelling, learning to depict Dreaming stories, bush foods and women’s ceremonial traditions through art.

Today Bernadine lives with her husband Steven and their children on Napperby Station in the Northern Territory. Her paintings are vibrant, intricate and deeply connected to the desert landscape, often inspired by bush flowers, ceremonial gatherings and the seasonal changes across Country. She is particularly well known for her highly detailed Bush Medicine Leaf paintings, which have become a signature style within her work. Through flowing forms, layered dot work and bold colour palettes, Bernadine captures the beauty, movement and abundance of desert life.

This artwork depicts the beauty of the desert after rain, when wildflowers bloom across the Country and the landscape comes alive with colour.

Bernadine paints an aerial view of women’s ceremonial gathering places and the native plants, flowers and seeds found throughout her homeland in Central Australia. The large circular flower forms represent blooming desert flowers, while the flowing lines symbolise the movement of women travelling across Country as they gather bush tucker, bush medicine and seeds.

The smaller floral motifs and leaf forms scattered throughout the composition represent the many medicinal and food plants traditionally collected by Aboriginal women. Bush medicine leaves are a central theme in Bernadine’s work and are an important part of traditional healing practices. Some leaves can be crushed or boiled and mixed with animal fat to create remedies used to treat cuts, wounds and skin ailments.

Bernadine’s paintings celebrate the connection between women, Country and traditional knowledge. Through her vibrant use of colour and intricate detail, she captures the energy, movement and abundance of the desert landscape during times of renewal and growth.