Details of Mick Jawalji
About
Mick Jawalji was born at Yulumbu, in western Gija country, around 1920, just before the establishment of Tableland cattle station. Yulumbu is the Gija name for the place where the Tableland station airstrip lies. Jawalji is the senior traditional owner of the Bangurr region of Western Gija country. Bangurr is the name of the huge flat topped hill, on the way to the Tableland homestead. Bangurr is known as Black Person Hill in English. Jawalji's father was one of the main workers who built the Tableland station homestead. Jawalji grew up on Yulumbu and learnt stockwork. Like most old Aboriginal people in the Kimberley he worked with cattle, mustering and droving. As well as being headstockman, he was a renowned horsebreaker. Jawalji and his stockmen drove cattle from Tableland to the Glenroy meatworks and as far away as Derby and Wyndham. While he was living and working in his country, Jawalji learnt about all the places in that country. He learnt the stories of these places and the meanings of the rock paintings found there. Each wet season he and his people would meet to pratice law, sometimes walking as far as Mt House station. This helped maintain their country and culture.
Jawalji also spent a number of years working on Mornington, a station west of Yulumbu. He lived with the Andayin people and learnt much Andayin law and culture from his stepfather and mother. Jawalji speaks for Andayin country, now that the traditional owner has passed away.
As well as Tableland and Mornington stations, Jawalji worked at Fossil Downs, Brooking Springs, Mabel Downs and Lansdowne stations.
Since retiring, Jawalji has lived in a number of communities. He now lives in Imintji community, on the Gibb River Road, 220km east of Derby. He started painting on canvas in about 2001, at first on carboard, and has experimented with both ochre and acrylic on board and canvas.
He joined the other Gija Warmun artists in 2002, continuing to paint his boards in Imintji but paying frequent visits to Warmun, where he has family. Gallery owners and art collectors quickly recognise the value of the paintings of this strong law man and his boards are in high demand.
Jawalji's paintings feature places in his Bangurr country and dreamtime stories from those places. He continues to live in Western Gija country with his offsider Barney Yu, who also lives at Imintji. He is an acclaimed painter and paints under his Aboriginal name, Ngara.
MEDIUM
Natural ochre on canvas
Natural ochre on plyboard
THEMES
West Gija country & landforms
Traditional Ngarrangkarni (Dreaming) stories
Ban.gurr & Yulumbu country
Andayin country
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2009 Mick Jawalji, William Mora Galleries, Melbourne, VIC
2008 Mick Jawalji: Recent Works, William Mora Galleries, Melbourne, Vic
2006 Ban.gurr, William Mora Galleries, Melbourne, Vic
2005 Dawyan, Dawyan (This One, This One) William Mora Galleries, Melbourne, Vic
2004 Raft Artspace, Darwin, NT
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2011 'Butcher Cherel, Mick Jawalji & Rammey Ramsey', Ian Potter Gallery, Melbourne, Vic
2011 'Jiliny: senior Warmun Men: Mick Jawalji with other senior men of Warmun Art, Short St Gallery, Broome, WA
2010 Western Australian Indigenous Art Awards, Art Gallery of Western Australia. WA
2010 'Butcher Cherel, Mick Jawalji & Rammey Ramsey' RAFT Artspace, ALice Springs, NT
2009 'Sharing difference on common ground: Mangkaja, Mowanjum, Waringarri, Warmun' Holmes a Court Gallery, Perth WA
2009 'First and Second Generation Artists from Warringarri and Warmun' Seva Fregos Gallery, Perth, WA
2009 Art in Ochre, Short Street Gallery, Broome, WA
2009 Ochre Dreaming: Stories from the East Kimberley', Redot Gallery, Singapore
2008 Mungowum Ngarraknaari Yaarun (Strong Stories, Strong Culture) Short St. Gallery. Broome, WA
2008 A Capital Idea: Ten Years of Warmun Ochres', Chapman Gallery, Canberra, ACT
2007 Wardua-wurrarem (all kinds of stars)', Raft Artspace, Darwin, NT
2006 Warmun Art Centre Presents, Mary Place Gallery, Sydney, NSW
2006 Land Marks Exhibition, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Vic
2005 Gija: Across the Border, Raft Artspace, Darwin, NT
2003 Artplace, Perth, WA
COLLECTIONS
National Gallery of Victoria, Vic
Rupert Myer Collection
Serval Foundation, Geneva
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
2006 'LandMarks', Judith Ryan, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Vic
