Joy Petyarre / Yam Seed Dreaming (3A)

Joy Petyarre was boring at Boundary Bore, Utopia, NT in 1965. She comes from one of the most famous painting families in Australia. Her style is distinctive and the intricate dot-work and overlaid painting technique combined with a flair for colour and attention to detail is sure to take this artist to the top of her profession.

Her mother was the late Glory Ngarla who passed away in 2002. The loss had a devastating affect on Joy and she did not paint for some time. Encouraged by her sister Anna Price Petyarre, also a well-known artist, Joy is now producing excellent and consistent works.

Her mother Glory was a prominent Utopian artist, and related by marriage to Emily Kame Kngwarreye. She was known for her eye for colour, a legacy of her Batik work, which she has passed down to Joy. Glory also favoured the intricate dotwork style that Joy has embraced.

Joy’s artworks have been included in Group Exhibitions and are in the Holmes a Court and Artbank collections.

Selected Exhibitions

1981
• Adelaide Festival of Arts

1996
• Tandanya Aboriginal Cultural Institute, Adelaide

1990
• Institute of Contemporary Art, Perth

1994
• Brahma Tirta Sari Batik Studio, Joogyakarta, Indonesia

1998
• Aboriginal Art Galleries of Australia, Melbourne

Selected Collections
• Holmes a Court Collection, Perth
• Artbank

Joy paints the seed of the Bush Yam. The Desert yam is an important food source for the Aboriginal people from Utopia in central Australia. It has an impressive root system, spreading up to twelve metres from the stalk, and is commonly found in woodland areas nearby a water source. Its bright green leaves and yellow flowers, can spread over quite a wide area, growing strongly until after the rainfall months when it is harvested by digging it out of the ground. By depicting the Yam Dreaming in their paintings, indigenous artists are able to pay homage to this significant plant and encourage its continual rejuvenation.

The women perform in their Awelye ceremonies certain songlines and dance cycles to show respect for their country and to ensure continues productivity of the Desert yam.