Art Communities

Tennant Creek, just over 500 Kms north of Alice Springs on the Stuart Highway, is the home to Julalikarii Arts centre. The arts centre is located in ‘the Pink Palace’, which was built by Mary Ward of Banka Banka Station as a hostel for stockmen and their families coming into town from out bush. In 1995 it was converted to become the Art and Craft Centre for local Aboriginal Women.

The Art Centre is creative home to about 16 women artists. They represent, both in artwork and language groups, an enormous spread of traditional country in the Barkly Region and beyond. Their age and experience is of a similar broad range.

In July 2004 Tennant Creek saw the opening of the Nyinkka Nyunyu Art and Culture Centre. This is a state-of-the-art exhibition, performance, retail and museum space, an extraordinary architectural work with strong local character. It provides an opportunity for local artists to market their works and showcase their talent.

Peggy Jones, the best known of Julalikari artists, continues to produce her richly- applied and boldly executed paintings of bush tucker, animals and birds, and soakages. Most of the artists working from this region express a similar love for the flora and fauna, for the landscape, and for cultural activities and ceremonies.

These themes are particularly emphasised in a colourful and wonderfully balanced style by Flora Holt, whose unique talent is being widely recognised. Ruth Dawson has also attracted attention since a painting of hers was chosen for a commission on the new Adelaide - Darwin Railway.