Mark Nodea / Buffalo Hole to Cherabun Station (19554)

Born in Derby in 1968, Mark Nodea lives in Turkey Creek (Warmun) and is a respected figure in his community. A former Chairperson of Warmun Art Centre, Mark is a passionate ambassador for both his people and the traditional ochre art of the East Kimberley.

Mark is widely recognised as an exceptionally gifted artist, with a particular mastery of natural ochres — a medium deeply connected to his cultural heritage. While he is skilled across a range of forms, including striking charcoal sketches and figurative works in acrylic, it is through ochre that Mark’s work truly resonates. His use of this traditional medium reflects both deep cultural knowledge and an extraordinary artistic instinct, bringing a timeless quality and emotional depth to his paintings.

He learned the stories of his Country from his mother, the late Nancy Nodea, herself a respected senior artist and traditional owner. Mark paints her Country, Texas Downs, as well as his father’s Country around Cherabun Station. His father, Hanson Boxer, is a Walmajarri man, which allows Mark to incorporate both Gija and Walmajarri Country into his work including the Yakinarra area (an excision of Go Go Station near Fitzroy Crossing) and Cherabun Station.

Mark’s work ranges from bold, flamboyant compositions to more minimal and contemplative pieces, with his natural talent evident in every brushstroke. He is undoubtedly one of the most naturally talented Australian artists.

In 2002, Mark won the Royal Australian Mint’s International Award for his design of a pure silver collector coin — one of only ten such coins released since 1983. He has exhibited widely in group shows, and his first solo exhibition at the Alison Kelly Gallery in Melbourne in 2003 was a sell-out success. In 2013, he was awarded first prize in the $20,000 Mid West Art Award for Excellence, triumphing over a strong field of Western Australian artists. His 2020 solo exhibition at Short Street Gallery in Broome was also a sell-out, confirming his strong and growing reputation among collectors and galleries alike.

Selected Collections
• Art Gallery of Queensland
• Laverty Collection, Sydney
• Art Gallery of Western Australia
• Ross Jones Collection, Sydney

Awards
• 2019 Finalist- Midwest Art Prize
• 2013 First Prize, $20,000 Mid West Art Award for Excellence
• 2002 Kimberley Interpreting Centre, Designer of Image for Medical Poster
• 2002 Royal Australian Mint, Canberra, Designer of 10th Commemorative Silver Dollar

Solo Exhibitions
• 2020 Mark Nodea – Balungarr, Short Street Gallery, Broome, WA
• 2003 Alison Kelly Gallery, Melbourne, Vic

Selected Group Exhibitions
• 2019 Desert River Sea, AGWA, Perth WA
• 2019 Midwest Art Prize Exhibition, Geraldton Regional Art Gallery, WA
• 2018 GIJA Exhibition, Woolloongabba Art Gallery, QLD
• 2014 Warmun Aboriginal Art – Art Images Gallery, Adelaide, SA
• 2013 5th Annual Belle Arti Prize Exhibition
• 2008 East of East Kimberley, ReDot Gallery, Singapore
• 2007 Ochre on Board, Japingka Gallery, Fremantle, WA
• 2007 Back To The Board, Coo-ee Gallery, Sydney, NSW
• 2007 Wolf Creek Crater, AGOG, Melbourne, VIC
• 2006 Warmun Art Centre Presents, Mary Place Gallery, Sydney, NSW
• 2005 Warmun Group Show, Framed Gallery, Darwin, NT
• 2003 ‘Group Show’, Framed Gallery, Darwin, NT
• 2003 ‘East Kimberley Show’, Short Street Gallery, Broome, WA
• 2002 Coomalie Culture Centre, Batchelor, NT
• 2002 ‘All That Gija Country’, Flinder’s University Art Museum, Adelaide, SA
• 2002 Thornquest Gallery, Gold Coast, QLD
• 2002 ‘New Works from Warmun Community’ (Turkey Creek), Framed Gallery, Darwin, NT
• 2001 ‘In Celebration – The Peter Bailiee Aquisitive Exhibition’, Flinders University Art Museum