Helen Nungarrayi Reed / Mina Mina Dreaming (650-21ny)

Artwork is accompanied by Warlukurlangu Artists (Yuendumu) Art Centre Certificate of Authenticity/Provenance

Helen Nungarrayi Reed was born in 1971 in Haasts Bluff, a community located 227 km west of Alice Springs in NT of Australia. She grew up in Kintore, a small Aboriginal community with a population of about 400, located 550 km west of Alice Springs, near the NT/WA border, where her father and sister still live. Her mother passed away when she was very young. She now lives in Nyirripi, originally an outstation of Yuendumu but now a small community, 440 km west from Alice Springs in Northern Territory. She lives with her husband Geoffrey Gallagher.

Helen has been painting with Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation, since 2014. She paints her father’s Ninkuwakal country. She likes painting because it reminds her of her father and the colours remind her of her country.

Mina Mina is the area or country this painting is depicting. It is far west of Yuendumu and is very important to the Napangardi/Napanangka women. These women and their Japangardi/Japanangka brothers, are the custodians of the Jukurrpa that created the area. This story (Dreaming) tells of the journey of a group of women who travelled east gathering food, ngalyipi‟ (snake vine) and performing ceremonies as they journeyed. The ‘ngalyipi’ vine grows up the trunks and branches of the ‘kurrkara’ (desert oak trees. ‘Ngalyipi’ is a sacred vine to Napangardi and Napanangka women that has many uses. It can be used as a ceremonial wrap, as a strap to carry ‘parrajas’ (wooden bowls) that are laden with bush tucker and as a bandage for headaches.

The women began their travels at Mina Mina where karlangu‟ (digging sticks) emerged from the ground. Taking these tools the women travelled east creating Janyinki and other sites. Their travels took them eventually further than Warlpiri country. The women used the karlangu‟ to gather bush tucker on their travels. In contemporary Warlpiri paintings traditional iconography is used to represent the Jukurrpa, connected sites and other elements. The main theme used in paintings of these Dreaming are the karlangu”