Rosella Namok Paintings
Rosella Namok - Lockhart River artist, paintings of the North Queensland coast.
Rosella Namok
Date of Birth
May 1979
Place of Birth
Lockhart River, QLD
Language Group
Kanthanampu and Aangkum
Community
Lockhart River, QLD
Who is Rosella Namok?
She is one of Australia’s most successful contemporary Aboriginal artists. Born in 1979, Rosella Namok is an Ungkum speaker who grew up in Lockhart River community. Rosella Namok’s lands are to the south of Lockhart River, and her totem is the Rosella.
How did Rosella Namok start painting?
Rosella Namok began painting when she was still young, assisting her father to decorate the bodies of dancers using ochre paints in readiness for traditional ceremonies. As her father painted the dancers’ bodies Rosella would help with smearing the ochre clay onto the body and working it with the fingers to create the appropriate designs. The marks and patterns used on the body painting and on the ceremonial ground are highly symbolic.
What are the themes in her art?
The ancestral markings remain as a significant element in Rosella Namok’s art today. She also uses other traditional symbols learnt from the sand drawing methods taught to her by her grandmother. In Rosella Namok’s work we can observe decorative finger painting as well as “scraping” of the surface. “I paint mainly about clan groups, country, family and what people do” says Namok. Other subjects include the seasons – the dry and the wet – and the rainforest. I also paint about the stories people tell me about, the spirits and carnival journeys to other communities.” Rosella Namok’s art finds a way to combine contemporary techniques with cultural narratives.
Why is Rosella Namok’s work associated with the Houston Ballet?
Rosella Namok enjoys a celebrated reputation among national and international art collectors. Her work is represented in all major Australian public galleries and collections. Two paintings by Rosella Namok were re-created to form the 20 metre backdrop to the US ballet company’s 2013 production of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring. Namok’s paintings “Rain” and “Marks on Sand, After King Tide” both landscapes from the artist’s ancestral homeland in Lockhart River, were chosen for the production in Houston. Rosella Namok attended the performance as a guest of honour at the premiere – it was the artist’s first opportunity to see classical dance on stage. Stanton Welch, the Houston Ballet’s Australian artistic director said “I found Rosella’s paintings to be unique, timeless, and universal. They reminded me of nature and of a universal landscape ideal for the production of Rite of Spring.”
Rosella Namok has participated in over 30 national and international exhibitions, and is represented in all major Australian public galleries. Rosella Namok works from her studio in Cairns. A selection of paintings by Rosella Namok are available from Japingka Gallery, where collectors can buy Aboriginal art online with certainty of quality, authenticity and provenance of art works.
Sourced from a number of interviews directly with the artist, read Rosella describe her painting themes and reflections on her life as an artist: Rosella Namok Artist Profile
Aboriginal Art Status
Collectable artist
Collections
Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
ATSIC Collection, Canberra
Australian Heritage Commission, Canberra
Brisbane Club, Brisbane
Cairns Regional Gallery, Cairns
Columbus State University, Columbus, GA, USA
Emerald Shire Council, Emerald, QLD
Federal Court of Australia, Brisbane
Flinders University, Adelaide
Macquarie University, Sydney
Monash University, Melbourne
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Northern Territory University, Darwin
Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
Queensland Health Rights Commission, Brisbane
Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane
State Library of Queensland, Brisbane
The Esk Collection, Hobart
The High Court of Australia, Canberra
The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
University of Queensland, Brisbane
Warrnambool Art Gallery, Warnambool VIC
Wollongong University, Wollongong
International Education Services, Brisbane
Fondation Burkhardt-Felder Arts et Culture, Motiers, Switzerland
Department of Environment and Heritage, Sydney
Georgia State University Collection, USA
High Court of Australia, Canberra
Kluge-Ruhe Collection, Virginia, USA
Macquarie Bank Australia
Artbank, Sydney
Solo Exhibitions
1999 ʻbout here….Lockhart River, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2000 Me come from ʻyah, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2000 ʻnother way, Gallery Gabrielle Pizzi, Melbourne VIC
2001 Melpa Sarbie Paint, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane QLD
2001 Ee right this way, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2002 Happenʼ this way, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane QLD
2002 Tinta, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2003 Rosella Namok, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne VIC
2003 Rosella, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2004 Rosella Namok at The Essoign Club, Melbourne VIC
2004 Rosella Namok, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2004ʻnother side, October Gallery, London UK
2004 Kungkay Ma (Up North), Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane QLD
2005 My Puuya… My Life Essence, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane QLD
2005 Rosella Namok: New Paintings, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2005 Rosella Namok: New Works, Adele Boag Gallery, Adelaide SA
2006 Up North, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne VIC
2006 Rosella Namok, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2007 Sea Country, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2008 Rosella Namok, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne VIC
2008 From Sand Beach Side, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2008 Ngaachi Bla Mepla, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane QLD
2009 Rosella Namok, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney NSW
2011 Rosella Namok and Arone Meeks, Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Sydney NSW
2013 Rosella Namok, Naagchi Ngumu’luugku – I Come from There, Japingka Gallery, Perth WA
2015 Rosella Namok, Japingka Gallery, Perth WA
2021 Rosella Namok Recent Paintings, Japingka Gallery, Perth WA
Art Awards – Rosella Namok
1997 Rena Allen Jones Award, Warrnambool Art Gallery
1998 15th NATSIAA Awards Finalist
1999 Cape York Art Awards Laura Festival 2nd Prize
1999 Momento Awards – Most innovative product by an indigenous artist
1999 Young Australian of the Year (arts) nomination
2000 17th NATSIAA Awards Finalist
2000 The Fifth National Indigenous Heritage Art Award – Lin Onus Youth Award
2001 Wynne Prize, Art Gallery of NSW Finalist
2003 20th NATSIAA Finalist
2003 Redlands Westpac Art Prize Winner
2004 High Court of Australia Centenary Art Award
2004 Wynne Prize, Art Gallery of New South Wales Finalist
2020 Sunshine Coast Art Prize Finalist
Group Exhibitions
1997 Mepla Sarbie Art with the Lockhart River Art Gang, Lockhart River Art and Culture Centre, QLD
1997 ngana nyllkana – us painting, with the Lockhart River Art Gang, Cairns Regional Gallery, QLD
1997 Rena Ellen Jones Award, Warrnambool Art Gallery, VIC
1998 National Indigenous Art of Place Award, Old Parliament House, Canberra ACT
1998 15th Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory and touring
1999 23rd Biennial of Graphic Art, Lubljana, Slovenia
1999 International Works on Paper Fair, Sydney NSW
1999 Postcard Exhibition, Cairns Regional Gallery, Cairns QLD
1999 Lockhart River Art Gang ʻwe searchingʼ, Queensland Aboriginal Creations, Brisbane QLD
1999 Message Stick: Art from North Queenslandʼs Lockhart River Aboriginal Community, Queensland Aboriginal Creations, Brisbane and touring until 2001
2000 Uncommon World: Aspects of Contemporary Australian Art, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra ACT
2000 Beyond the Pale: Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, Art Gallery of South Australia SA
2000 Fortitude: New Art from Queensland, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane QLD
2000 Telstra 17th National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, Museum and Art Gallery of Northern Territory and travelling
2000 The Art of Place-Fifth National Indigenous Heritage Art Award, Old Parliament House, Canberra ACT
2000 Postcards Exhibition, Cairns Regional Gallery, QLD
2000 In my eyes: an exhibition of fine art prints by the Lockhart River Art Gang and
2000 Friends, Cairns Regional Gallery, Queensland
2000 Olympic Exhibition, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney
2000 From the Top: Lockhart River- Samantha Hobson & Rosella Namok, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane QLD
2000 Parma Belong Sandbeach: paintings and prints by the Lockhart River Art Gang, Queensland Aboriginal Creations, Brisbane QLD
2001 Indigenous Highlights from the State Art Collection, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth WA
2001 Postcard Exhibition, Cairns Regional Gallery, QLD
2001 Dreamtime: Zeitgenossische Aboriginal Art, The Dark & the Light, Sammlung, Essl, Klosterneuburg, Austria
2001 Wynne Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney NSW
2001 Lines of Descent: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Prints and Objects, Queensland University of Technology Art Museum, Brisbane QLD
2001 Federation Exhibition: Local Colour, Local Lives, Cairns Regional Gallery QLD
2001 Gatherings, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Brisbane QLD
2001 A Few of my Favourite Things, Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane QLD
2001 In my Eyes: An Exhibition of Fine Art Prints by the Lockhart River Art Gang and Friends, Vera Scarth-Johnson Gallery, Cooktown QLD
2002 Wild Nature in Contemporary Australian Art and Craft, Jam Factory, Adelaide SA
2002 Indecorous Abstraction: Contemporary Women Painters, Light Square Gallery, Adelaide SA
2002 Indigenous Highlights from the Sate Art Collection, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth WA
2002 Cape York Indigenous Art Showcase Exhibition (inaugural Berlin exhibition), Ludwig Erhard Haus, Berlin, Germany
2002 Collectible Aboriginal Art Event, Raintree Aboriginal Fine Art Gallery, Darwin NT
2002 International Women’s Day Event, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2002 New Ground, Main Street Gallery, Adelaide SA
2003 Story Place, Indigenous Art of Cape York and the Rainforest, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane QLD
2003 The Art Gang: Contemporary Aboriginal Painting, Columbus State University, Georgia USA
2003 Icons that Build a Collection, Cairns Regional Art Gallery QLD
2003 Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award 2003, Museum and Art Gallery of Northern Territory, Darwin NT
2003 Beneath the Monsoon: Visions North of Capricorn, Artspace Mackay, Cairns Regional Gallery, Cairns QLD
2003 Perc Tucker Regional Gallery
2003 Water: Prints from Lockhart River and the Tiwi Islands, Queensland University of Technology ArtMuseum, Brisbane QLD
2004 Out of Country, Gallery 1601, Washington DC, USA
2005 Aboriginal Dreaming, European Discovery, Australian Embassy, Paris FRANCE
2005 Kungkay, Lockhart River Art Gang, Gallery Gondwana, Alice Springs, Northern Territory
2005 Dugongs of Hinchinbrook II, KickArts Gallery CoCa, Cairns QLD
2005 Cairns NAIDOC Exhibition 2005, Tanks Art Centre, Cairns QLD
2005 Affinities, NAIDOC Exhibition, ABC Ultimo, Sydney NSW
2006 Melbourne Art Fair, Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne VIC
2006 Dreaming Their Way: Australian Aboriginal Women Painters, National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, USA and touring
2007 Arte Indigena dallʼAustralia: Contemporary Indigenous Art of the Lockhart River Art Gang Queensland, Galleria Civica dʼArte Moderna, Palazzo Collicola, Spoleto, ITALY
2007 Our Way: Contemporary Aboriginal Art from Lockhart River, The University of Queensland Art Museum, Brisbane; National University of Singapore, Singapore; Charles Wand Center, Stony Brook University, New York, USA; The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
2008 Auckland Art Fair, New Zealand
2008 From Cape to Cove, Holmes à Court Gallery, Perth WA
2008 The Womenʼs Show, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2009 Twelve Degrees of Latitude: Regional Gallery and University Art Collections in Queensland
2009 Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, Queensland and touring
2009 10th Anniversary Exhibition, Ipswich Art Gallery, Queensland
2010 Inaugural exhibition, New Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Galleries, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra ACT
2010 Cairns Indigenous Art Fair, Tanks Art Centre, Cairns QLD
2011 Cairns Indigenous Art Fair, Tanks Art Centre, Cairns QLD
2016 Rosella Namok & Lockhart River Painters, Japingka Gallery, Perth WA
2018 Fiona Omeenyo & Rosella Namok, Japingka Gallery, Perth WA
2019 On the Coast – The Art of Fiona Omeenyo & Rosella Namok, Japinga Gallery, Perth WA
2019 Across the Top, Art Mob, Hobart
2019 Overcoming Adversity, Art Mob, Hobart
2019 Lunar Legacy, Art Mob, Hobart
2020 Across the Top 2020, Art Mob, Hobart
2020 Lockhart Art Gang – Sharing Our Stories, Kate Owen Gallery, Sydney
2020 Twelve Ways, Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane
2020 Twelve Artists, Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane
2020 Top Ten – Our Most Popular Artists 2019, Kate Owen Gallery, Sydney
2020 Blue July, Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane
2020 Black & White 2020, Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane
2021 Which Way? Fireworks Gallery, Brisbane
2021 Across the Top 2021, Art Mob, Hobart
2021 Mid-Winter Mofo, Art Mob, Hobart
2021 Lockhart Legends II, Kate Owen Gallery, Sydney
2021 Gold at Lockhart River, Art Mob, Hobart
2021 Rosella Namok & Fiona Omeenyo: Sandbeach People, Artspace Mackay, Mackay QLD
2021 The Women’s Show | 15th Anniversary Exhibition, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne
View:
Rosella Namok – Naagchi Ngumu’luugku – I Come from There – 2013
Rosella Namok 2015
Rosella Namok & Lockhart River Painters -2016
Fiona Omeenyo & Rosella Namok -2018
On the Coast – The Art of Fiona Omeenyo & Rosella Namok – 2019
Rosella Namok Recent Paintings – 2021
Read:
Rosella Namok Artist Profile
Bold Colours of the Tropical Coast From Fiona Omeenyo and Rosella Namok
Links
Wikipedia – Rosella Namok
Art Gallery of South Australia
Art Gallery of New South Wales
High Court of Australia