Bernadine Johnson Kemarre / Bush Medicine Leaves (BJ305)

Bernadine Johnson Kemarre was born in 1974 at Ltyentye Apurte, also known as Santa Teresa, approximately 80 kilometres east of Alice Springs in Central Australia. She spent her early years growing up in community before later attending school in Alice Springs.

Bernadine comes from a strong artistic family connected to the Central Desert region. Her extended family includes well-known artists Abie Loy Kemarre and Josie Petrick Kemarre, while artist Anna Price Petyarre is her sister-in-law.

From a young age, Bernadine learned about the important Dreaming stories, women’s ceremonies and native food plants of her Country. These traditions continue to inspire her paintings and connect her work to the knowledge passed down through generations of Aboriginal women.

Bernadine’s artworks are characterised by flowing fields of bush leaves, fine dot work and both earthy and vibrant colour palettes. The repeated forms radiate across the canvas, creating a strong sense of movement, energy and growth.

Bernadine lives with her husband, Steven, and their children at Napperby Station in the Northern Territory. Through her paintings, she continues to celebrate the plants, stories and cultural knowledge of Central Australia.

This painting depicts the leaves and seeds of the Desert Yam, an important native food and medicinal plant traditionally gathered by Aboriginal women throughout Central Australia.

The yam grows beneath the ground, while its trailing vine, leaves and flowers spread across the surface. After seasonal rains, the plant comes to life across the desert landscape, helping women identify where the edible tubers may be found.

Women use digging sticks to carefully locate and harvest the yams. The tubers may be eaten raw or cooked and have long provided an important source of nourishment for Aboriginal families living in the desert.

The plant is also valued for its traditional medicinal uses. Knowledge of how to identify, gather and prepare native plants has been passed from older women to younger generations over countless years.

Bernadine represents the bush leaves and growth of the Desert Yam through repeated elongated forms radiating across the canvas. The surrounding dots represent the seeds of the plant.

Through this work, Bernadine pays homage to the spirit of the Desert Yam, painting it in the hope that it will continue to regenerate and provide food and medicine for future generations.