Helen Nelson Napaljarri facts for kids
Helen Nelson Napaljarri (born around 1949), also known as Helen White Napajarri or Helen Spencer Napaljarri, is an Aboriginal artist. She speaks the Walpiri language and comes from the Western Desert area of Australia. Helen worked as a literacy helper in Yuendumu, Northern Territory. She started painting with Warlukurlangu Artists in the 1980s. Her amazing paintings are kept in important places like the Art Gallery of South Australia and the South Australian Museum. She has also helped create several books that are written in both Walpiri and English.
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About Helen's Life
Helen was born around 1949. The exact year is not always clear because Indigenous Australians sometimes think about time differently. They might remember dates by comparing them to other important events.
'Napaljarri' is a special name called a 'skin name'. It's used by Indigenous people in central Australia. These skin names help show how people are related to each other. They also help decide who can marry whom. Even though they can be used when talking to someone, they are not like last names that Europeans use. So, 'Helen Nelson' is the part of her name that is just for her.
Helen worked in Yuendumu, Northern Territory as a teaching assistant. She also helped people learn to read and write. It was there, in the 1980s, that she first started painting with a group called Warlukurlangu Artists.
Helen's Art and Writing Journey
How Desert Art Began
Modern Indigenous art from the Western Desert started in 1971. Indigenous men in Papunya began painting with help from a teacher named Geoffrey Bardon. They used bright acrylic paints to make designs. These designs often looked like body paintings or ground sculptures. This new art style quickly spread across Indigenous communities in central Australia. A special art program started in 1983, which helped even more. By the 1980s and 1990s, this art was shown all around the world!
At first, only men were painting, including those who started the Papunya Tula artists' company. Some Pintupi men in central Australia didn't want women to paint. But many women really wanted to join in. In the 1990s, lots of women started creating their own paintings. In places like Kintore, Yuendumu, and Balgo, and on smaller communities called outstations, people began making art especially to show and sell.
Helen's Artistic Career
Artists from the Western Desert, like Helen, often paint special 'dreamings'. These are stories or important beliefs that they have a personal connection to. For Helen, her dreamings include Ngarlkirdi (the witchetty grub) and Wardapi (the goanna).
Helen's paintings have been shown in the United States. You can find her artwork in the collections of the South Australian Museum and the Art Gallery.
Helen Nelson is also part of a group of writers. They created books in both Walpiri and English for a special unit that helps develop bilingual resources. In 1984, she helped write a book called Nyurruwiyi kuja kalalu-jana mardarnu pirltirrka = Childbirth in the old days. She also worked on books to help Aboriginal children learn English. These included The python who went in search of a burrow and A Frightening Sight, both published in 1985.
Where to See Her Art
