Polly Ngale
Overview
Awelye, n.d
Poly (Polly) Ngal was born in 1936 into the Anmatyarre tribe. Later she moved to Camel Camp in Utopia with her family and sisters, Kathleen Ngal, Maisy Ngal and Angelina Pwerl. Polly Ngale was greatly respected as one one of the most senior custodians of her country Alparra, in the heart of Utopia, located in the north west corner of the Simpson desert and roughly 350km north east of Alice Springs, along the Sandover Highway.
At the time of her death in 2022, Polly Ngale belonged to the oldest living generation of Utopia women and ranked among the most accomplished painters to have worked there during the past 20 years. Like many others, including her sister, Emily Kame Kngawarreye and Gloria Petyarre, Polly Ngale began her career in late 1979 creating images in Batik, prior to the introduction of painting in the late 1980s.
Polly Ngale is considered one of the most accomplished painters from the Utopia region and is inspired by the Arnwetky (conkerberry) - a green tangled, spiny shrub that produces fragrant white flowers. After the rainy summer season, tiny green berries begin to grow and ripen, changing colour over the weeks from pale green; to pink speckled with warm browns; to ripe shades of red and purple. These sweet kernels have come to be known as the ‘bush plum’, due to their resemblance to the plum fruit. The Arnwetky is a popular variety of bush tucker for the people of Utopia, as well as possessing medicinal properties. During the Dreamtime, winds came from all directions, carrying the Arnwetky seed all over the land of the artist and her ancestors. To ensure the continued fruiting of the Arnwetky, the Anmatyerre people pay homage to the spirit of the bush plum by recreating it in their ceremonies through song and dance, and in recent years, through painting. The patterns in the paintings can represent the fruit of the plant, its leaves and flowers, and also the body paint designs that are associated with it during ceremony. These bush plum seeds and fruits are the central subject matter of Polly Ngale’s painting. The effects of the totemic plant on the topography of the land is captured in myriad shades of reds, oranges and yellows, reflecting the changing hues of the seasons. Like her sister Kathleen, Poly Ngale's work uses layer upon layer of colour, creating a multi-dimensional effect to reveal the Bush Plum Ankwety – and her country – Alparra in all its glory.
At the time of her death in 2022, Polly Ngale belonged to the oldest living generation of Utopia women and ranked among the most accomplished painters to have worked there during the past 20 years. Like many others, including her sister, Emily Kame Kngawarreye and Gloria Petyarre, Polly Ngale began her career in late 1979 creating images in Batik, prior to the introduction of painting in the late 1980s.
Polly Ngale is considered one of the most accomplished painters from the Utopia region and is inspired by the Arnwetky (conkerberry) - a green tangled, spiny shrub that produces fragrant white flowers. After the rainy summer season, tiny green berries begin to grow and ripen, changing colour over the weeks from pale green; to pink speckled with warm browns; to ripe shades of red and purple. These sweet kernels have come to be known as the ‘bush plum’, due to their resemblance to the plum fruit. The Arnwetky is a popular variety of bush tucker for the people of Utopia, as well as possessing medicinal properties. During the Dreamtime, winds came from all directions, carrying the Arnwetky seed all over the land of the artist and her ancestors. To ensure the continued fruiting of the Arnwetky, the Anmatyerre people pay homage to the spirit of the bush plum by recreating it in their ceremonies through song and dance, and in recent years, through painting. The patterns in the paintings can represent the fruit of the plant, its leaves and flowers, and also the body paint designs that are associated with it during ceremony. These bush plum seeds and fruits are the central subject matter of Polly Ngale’s painting. The effects of the totemic plant on the topography of the land is captured in myriad shades of reds, oranges and yellows, reflecting the changing hues of the seasons. Like her sister Kathleen, Poly Ngale's work uses layer upon layer of colour, creating a multi-dimensional effect to reveal the Bush Plum Ankwety – and her country – Alparra in all its glory.
Her paintings are borne from traditional knowledge and her confident approach to painting could be seen in the way she assembled streams of seeds, piling dots upon each other to create rich, thick fields in glowing colour. There is a sensual resonance to the clotted canvases, at once microscopic and cosmic in perspective.
Polly Ngale's subject matter was always drawn from acute observation and memory, intimate knowledge of the country, personal history and ancestral journey. Seamless in her portrayal of these elements, her legacy consisted of sensory responses to that place, suffused with the artist’s intimate sense of self, and outward world view. Polly Ngale’s work has appeared in the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award since 2003. Her honourable mention as a 2004 finalist was followed by representation at the Contemporary Art Fair in Paris at the Grand Palais Champs Elysees. Polly was also represented in the exhibition Emily Kngwarreye and her Legacy at the Hillside Forum Daikanyama Tokyo in 2008. Her work has been exhibited extensively both in Australia and overseas since the 1980s.
Polly Ngale's subject matter was always drawn from acute observation and memory, intimate knowledge of the country, personal history and ancestral journey. Seamless in her portrayal of these elements, her legacy consisted of sensory responses to that place, suffused with the artist’s intimate sense of self, and outward world view. Polly Ngale’s work has appeared in the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award since 2003. Her honourable mention as a 2004 finalist was followed by representation at the Contemporary Art Fair in Paris at the Grand Palais Champs Elysees. Polly was also represented in the exhibition Emily Kngwarreye and her Legacy at the Hillside Forum Daikanyama Tokyo in 2008. Her work has been exhibited extensively both in Australia and overseas since the 1980s.
Works
