Injalak Arts facts for kids

Injalak Arts is named after Injalak Hill, about one kilometre from the art centre over the floodplain

Injalak Arts (also known as Injalak Arts and Crafts) is a special art centre run by the community. It's a place where Aboriginal artists create amazing art. It's located in Gunbalanya in West Arnhem Land, Australia. The centre started in 1989.

Injalak Arts is famous for its artists who create art that looks like real things, often inspired by ancient rock art traditions from West Arnhem Land. They also make beautiful woven items from pandanus plants. Most artists are Kunwinjku people, but artists from many different language groups in Arnhem Land also share their work here. Injalak Arts is a big part of the modern Aboriginal Art movement, which is known all over Australia and the world.

History of Injalak Arts

How the Art Became Popular

People wanted art and crafts from the Gunbalanya area long before Injalak Arts began. Early European visitors collected many pieces. For example, Walter Baldwin Spencer, an anthropologist, visited Gunbalanya in 1912. He collected many bark paintings and woven items.

Later, in 1948, the American-Australian Scientific Expedition came to Gunbalanya. They asked for many paintings on bark. Over time, more people became interested in this unique art.

The market for Kunwinjku art really grew from the late 1950s. Big government groups and museums started buying a lot of art. Important collectors included the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Basel Ethnographic Museum. The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies also bought many pieces.

From 1962 to 1974, the Church Mission Society helped sell art from Arnhem Land. By the 1970s, many visitors and collectors were buying art directly from West Arnhem Land artists.

Starting Injalak Arts

The idea for Injalak Arts began with a screenprinting group in 1986. Wendy Kennedy, a teacher, helped start this group for people doing the The Duke of Edinburgh's Award. They learned screenprinting and soon made printed fabric, bags, and clothes.

Some of the first people in this group, like Gabriel Maralngurra and Donna Nadjamerrek, are still leaders at Injalak Arts today.

In 1988, the men in the group moved to a new workshop. They started using designs that were more like traditional West Arnhem Land art. This was important because it connected their new art to ancient cultural styles. Elders and traditional owners of the designs, like Bardayal 'Lofty' Nadjamerrek, became interested. This led to special cultural rules for making and selling art, which are still used at Injalak today.

The government saw the screenprinting group's success and wanted to help local businesses. In 1986–87, there were talks about making the group a bigger art centre. This was happening as Aboriginal Art was becoming very popular. In 1988, the screenprinting group received $500,000 from the government. This money helped build the Injalak Art Centre where it stands now. The centre officially started on April 12, 1989.

Growing the Art Centre

After the new building was ready, more art was created. Screenprinting and sewing continued, and painting and weaving (especially with pandanus plants) grew a lot.

An important artist in the early days was Thompson Yulidjirri (who passed away in 2009). He taught younger artists and helped Injalak become a place where cultural knowledge was passed down. Artists from Gunbalanya started getting more recognition. For example, Samuel Namundja won a major art award, the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award, for his bark painting in 1993.

Over the years, different managers helped the art centre grow. In 2012, Felicity Wright, the first manager, returned to share leadership with Gabriel Maralngurra and Isaiah Nagurrgurrba.

Cultural Tourism

Injalak Arts has always been involved in cultural tourism. This means they help visitors learn about the local culture and art. They offer tours of nearby Injalak Hill. Injalak Hill is a very important Aboriginal rock art site. It's only about one kilometre from the art centre.

Tours of Injalak Hill

Since 1989, Injalak artists have been guides for tours of Injalak Hill. At first, these tours were informal. Tourists would hire artists as guides and agree on a price that day.

In 1992, Injalak's leaders decided to officially promote cultural tourism. They wanted to help people understand Kunwinjku art and culture. They also wanted to create jobs and income for the community.

As more people wanted to visit, tourists started booking tours in advance. By the year 2000, during the dry season, about 10 to 15 tours went from the art centre to Injalak Hill each week.

Artists

Current Artists

Notable Deceased Artists Associated with Injalak Arts

Art Forms and Materials

Artists at Injalak Arts use many different materials and styles. Some are traditional, and some are new art forms encouraged by the centre.

• Bark paintings using natural ochres (earth pigments) and acrylic paints.
• Paintings on Arches paper with ochres and acrylics.
• Etchings (prints made from etched metal plates).
• Woven, knotted, and coiled works made from pandanus plants. These include baskets, mats, dilly bags, and sculptural works.
• Knotted fibre bags made from kurrajong bark and Livistona humilis palm leaves.
• Mako (Didgeridoos) (traditional wind instruments).
• Traditional cultural items like Clapsticks, spear throwers, and spears.
• Screen printed fabrics.
• Carvings, including Mimih Spirit carvings (figures from Aboriginal folklore).
• Jewellery like earrings and necklaces, made with pandanus, seeds (often Adenanthera pavonina), and sometimes bones.

Visiting Injalak Arts

Visitors coming via road need to cross the East Alligator River at Cahill's Crossing. Image: Tourism NT

Getting to Gunbalanya by road depends on the East Alligator River's water level. Cahill's Crossing, about 16 km from Gunbalanya, might be flooded during the wet season or at high tide.

During the dry season (May to October), the road is usually open. However, visitors should always check tide times and ask Kakadu National Park or the art centre for advice. The river can sometimes be crossed in April, November, and early December too.

Visitors need a permit from the Northern Land Council in Jabiru or Darwin to enter Arnhem Land. For day visitors, these permits are usually given right away. But the offices are closed on weekends, so plan ahead! Sometimes, permits might not be given due to weather, ceremonies, or funerals. It's a good idea to contact the Northern Land Council beforehand.

The turnoff to Cahill's Crossing is on the Arnhem Highway just before Jabiru. The road is sealed (tarred) from the highway to Cahill's Crossing. After the crossing, it's a dirt road until just before Gunbalanya. The drive from Jabiru to the art centre takes about 60 minutes. You can drive your own car, or join a tour company that includes Injalak Arts.

Gunbalanya also has an airport, Oenpelli Airport, which is open all year. You can take charter flights from Jabiru. Gunbalanya Air Charters also provides transport between the airport and the town in both Gunbalanya and Jabiru.

Further Viewing

• Cracking the Colour Code: A visual exploration of how we view colours, how we make them, and the meanings they hold in our world, dir. Hugh Piper, Electric Pictures and Gedeon Programmes, in assoc. SBS Television, Arte France et al., 2008.
• Knowledge, Painting and Country, dir. Andrea & Peter Highlands, Creative Cowboy Films, 2011
• Rock Art and Yingana: A walk up Injalak Hill, dir. Andrea & Peter Highlands, Creative Cowboy Films, 2011
• The brush sings: Injalak – an aboriginal art centre, dir. Andrea & Peter Highlands, Creative Cowboy Films, 2011