Maringka Baker facts for kids

Maringka Baker is an Aboriginal artist from central Australia. She lives in the Pitjantjatjara community of Kaṉpi, South Australia. Maringka paints for Tjungu Palya, an art center located in nearby Nyapaṟi.

Maringka is well-known for her beautiful paintings. Her art tells important, sacred stories from her family's Dreaming (spirituality). Her paintings are also famous for their rich colors and strong contrasts. She often paints the desert landscape using bright green colors. She contrasts these greens with reds and ochres to show different landforms. She also uses many layers of contrasting colors to show the desert in full bloom.

Early Life and Family

Maringka was born around 1952 in the outback of Western Australia. She was born at Kaliumpil, which was an old ceremonial and camping site on the Ngaanyatjarra lands. Her mother and father passed away when she was a young girl. Maringka was then raised by her relatives, including Anmanari Brown.

She went to primary school at the mission in Warburton. However, she later left to join other relatives in Ernabella. After that, she moved to Kaltjiti. There, she finished high school and started working as a teacher.

In the late 1960s, Maringka married a man from Papulankutja. They had a daughter named Elaine in 1969. Maringka's husband died when Elaine was still a baby. Maringka then became a health worker. She moved with her daughter to Irrunytju to work in the local clinic. In the 1980s, Maringka married Douglas Baker. Douglas is the nephew of another artist, Jimmy Baker. They moved back east to live in Kaṉpi.

Artistic Career

Maringka began painting in 2004. She creates art for Tjungu Palya, which is a community arts center. This center is based in nearby Nyapaṟi. Maringka has become one of the most famous painters from this center.

Since 2005, Maringka's artwork has been shown in many exhibitions across Australia. These cities include Adelaide, Alice Springs, Broome, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney. Her work has also been shown in exhibitions overseas. These international shows took place in Singapore, Seattle, and London.

Her paintings are kept in important art collections. These include the National Gallery of Australia, the Art Gallery of South Australia, the Australian National University, and the National Gallery of Victoria.

Notable Exhibitions and Works

In 2007, Maringka was one of thirty artists featured in a special exhibition. This was the first National Indigenous Art Triennial exhibition, called Culture Warriors. It was held at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra.

This exhibition showed four of her paintings:

• Anmangunga (2006)
• Kata Ala (2006)
• Ngura Mankurpa (2006)
• Kuru Ala (2007)

The painting Kuru Ala (2007) shows a sacred women's site near Tjuntjuntjara. This site is linked to the creation story of the Seven Sisters. In Pitjantjatjara, they are called Kungkarrakalpa. Kuru Ala was chosen as a finalist for the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award in 2009. It is now displayed in the National Gallery in Canberra.

Collections

Maringka Baker's artworks are part of several important collections:

• The National Gallery of Victoria holds her painting Pukara.
• The National Gallery of Australia has three of her works. These include Kuru Ala from 2008 and Kuru Ala from 2007.

See also

In Spanish: Maringka Baker para niños