Maria Josette Orsto facts for kids

Maria Josette Orsto (born October 30, 1962 – died November 30, 2020) was an amazing Aboriginal artist. She was born in Pirlangimpi, on Melville Island. This is one of the Tiwi Islands in Australia's Northern Territory. Her parents, Declan Apuatimi and Jean Baptiste Apuatimi, were also famous artists from the Tiwi Islands. Maria was one of the first women to join Tiwi Designs. She lived and worked on Bathurst Island before she passed away.

Maria Josette Orsto: Her Early Life

Maria Josette Orsto grew up in Pirlangimpi on Melville Island. Her parents, Declan Apuatimi and Jean Baptiste Apuatimi, were well-known artists. They created paintings, sculptures, and performance art. Her father was a special ceremony leader and artist. Her mother was also a very important artist. Maria learned how to paint and carve from her father.

Maria Josette Orsto's Art Career

Maria Josette Orsto started her art career by helping her father. This was at the Tiwi Island Design arts cooperative. Later, in the 1990s, Maria began working at the Munupi Arts and Crafts Association. This was when the art center was just starting. She was the first female artist to work there. This happened after the Yikiyikini Women's Centre and Pirlangimpi Pottery joined together in 1990.

In 1994, Maria became one of the first women to create fabric designs for Tiwi Designs. This art center was started by artists Giovanni Tipungwuti and Bede Tungutalum. In 1997, Maria worked with artist Jock Puautjimi. They created seven designs for special pre-paid envelopes. These were ordered by Australia Post.

Understanding Tiwi Island Art

The History of Tiwi Designs

In the past, Tiwi designs were painted on people's bodies for ceremonies. This was to hide their identity from the spirit of someone who had passed away. Today, Tiwi people wear clothes made from fabrics with screen-printed designs.

Two important ceremonies in Tiwi life are the Kurlama and Pukumani ceremonies. The Kurlama ceremony celebrates health and new life. It happens every year during the wet season. This is when yams are ready to eat and a gold ring appears around the moon. The Kurlama ceremony lasts for two or three days and nights. It includes dancing, singing, and special body painting.

The Pukumani ceremony is about death and mourning. It involves carving and painting special burial poles called tutini. These poles are gifts for the spirit of the person who died. The poles are decorated with white, yellow, and red ochre. They have beautiful geometric designs.

Screen printing and fabric came to the islands when Father Gsell arrived. He started the Catholic mission at Nguiu, Bathurst Island, in 1911. This changed how Tiwi Islanders dressed. They went from wearing paperbark aprons to calico skirts. Later, they wore clothes with simple animal prints. These calico skirts were made using woodblock printing. Screen printing on fabric gave Tiwi people a way to sell their art. They could sell printed fabric to tourists and shops in Darwin.

Tiwi designs show a strong connection between the Tiwi people and their land. These designs are important for connecting the past and the future. They also carry important cultural knowledge.

Maria Josette Orsto's Tiwi Art Style

Maria Josette Orsto's art was inspired by Tiwi Island fabric designs. She worked with many different art forms. These included painting, batik-printmaking, and wood sculpture. At first, her style was bold, like her father's. Over time, it became softer and more gentle. She wanted her art to be unique and different from other artists.

She often used small dots and lines in her work. These aimed to make the surface look like land or an object. They also hinted at the spiritual world and its power. Maria's paintings often featured animals, Dreaming stories, and the Kulama ceremony. Like many Tiwi artists, Maria used a pwoja comb for painting. This is a traditional comb made by carving ridges into ironwood. This wood is cut when making a tutini (funeral pole).

Important Art Exhibitions

• 1996 - Printabout exhibition: This show featured sugar-lift etching works. Maria Josette Orsto and other Tiwi artists created these over three years. It was held at Northern Editions at Charles Darwin University. Maria's works Kurlama and Jilamara (1994) and Armband and Jilamara (1994) were shown.
• 2012 - Undisclosed exhibition: This was the second big Indigenous art show at the National Gallery of Australia. It included Maria's works: Jikapayinga (Female crocodile) (2007), Pakitiringa (Rain) (2007), and Mayinga (2009).
• 2012 - Maternal Lines: This exhibition was part of the Darwin Festival. It showed Maria Josette Orsto's 2D and 3D prints. It also featured works by Jean Baptiste Apuatimi and Bede Turngutalum.
• December 21, 2015 to February 21, 2016 - Being Tiwi exhibition: This show at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Australia featured nine Tiwi artists. Maria Josette Orsto's piece Kulama (2010) was included.
• 2020 to 2021 - Jilamara exhibition: Five of Maria's batik designs on silk and one on cotton were shown. This was at the National Gallery of Victoria's TIWI exhibition. Jilamara means body painting for the kulama (coming-of-age ceremony). In the same show, Maria made a bark basket. This was used in a ceramic sculpture by Mark Virgil Puautjimi.

Art Collections

Maria Josette Orsto's art is kept in several public collections. These include:

• Powerhouse Museum: This museum holds a screenprint called Jilamara. It was made by Osmund Kantiilla based on three of Maria's paintings. Another work, Kurlama, is also there.
• National Gallery of Australia: This gallery has about 25 of her works. These include Jilmaira (1994) and Mayinga Jilimara (2013).
• QAGOMA: This gallery owns Kulama body painting (2002), bought in 2003. Also, Ngirringani jilamara (2007), bought in 2007. And Jilimara (1990), which was a gift from Christopher Chapman.