- Title: Untitled 2
- Artist: Kitty Kantilla
- Region: Tiwi Islands
- Art Centre: Jilamara Arts and Crafts
- Medium: Etching
- Collection:
- Dimensions: 14.5 x 17.5
- Edition Size: 30
- Price ($AUD): $ 1280.00
Artwork Story
Kitty Kantilla was one of Australia’s most remarkable Indigenous artists, celebrated for her innovation, unique style and mastery of a range of mediums.
Kantilla produced an extraordinary body of work from the 1970s until her last days in 2003. In her hands the magic of Tiwi culture is translated into works of international significance.
Her earliest works were tutini (grave poles) and figures carved from ironwood using only a tomahawk, chisel and mallet, bark paintings and tunga (bark baskets). Instead of using the Tiwi painting comb (pwoja), Kantilla painted with a fine stick of coconut palm frond. Her paintings featured variable dots, each bearing the mark of her inimitable hand, earning her the nickname ‘Dot Dot’. When introduced to printmaking, Kantilla relinquished dots and colour for fragile lines and bands of delicate herringbone.
Seemingly abstract designs of Tiwi art refer to Pukumani and Kulama ceremonies and express the creativity of artists who use painting as a way of remembering.
Courtesy Art Gallery NSW