Details of Elsie (Mayapu) Thomas
About
Elsie Thomas was born at Pinga Waterhole in the Great Sandy Desert around 1940. Her family left the country of Elsie's birth and moved to Thomas Springs, where they joined other families who were moving towards the cattle stations of the Fitzroy valley.
Many families camped at Thomas Springs. But new diseases they encounted there killed many of the older people as well as children. Elsie's father, who had three wives, was killed when police came and chained his neck and several others at Fitzroy Crossing. A large group of children then moved onto Christmas Creek Station, to join other Wangkajungka groups who had settled there. Elsie moved there with her grandfather and later worked there and grew up her own family there.
Elsie is a story teller and an artist. She paints, carves coolamons and other artifacts, and weaves baskets from spinifex grass and coloured wool.
EXHIBITION HISTORY
2008 Mangkaja Arts, A P Bond Art Dealer, Adelaide, SA
2008 Marnintu Maparnana (Women Pinting), ReDot Gallery, Singapore
2008 Through Our Eyes - The Canning Stock Route, Port Hedland Courthouse Gallery, WA
2008 Divas of the Desert, Gallery Gondwana, Sydney, NSW
2008 Shalom Gamarada, Caspary Conference Centre, University of NSW
2008 The Canning Stock Route Project, Beijing International Olymipic Committee Expo, China
2007 Bendi Lango, Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane, Qld
2005 Wangkutjungka, Short St Gallery, Broome, WA
2002 Wangkutjungka, Short St Gallery, Broome, WA
Artworks of Elsie (Mayapu) Thomas
Sold
Sold
Sold
Sold
Sold
Sold
This artist currently has no artworks for sale, please view some recent sold works below.