Peggy Rockman Napaljarri facts for kids

Peggy Rockman Napaljarri (also known as Peggy Yalurrngali Rockman Napaljarri) was born around 1940. She is an Indigenous artist who speaks the Warlpiri language. Her home is in Australia's Western Desert area.

Peggy was born on what is now called Tanami Downs in the Northern Territory. As a child, she learned English while working with a white mining family. Later, the government moved Peggy and her family to Lajamanu. This is a new community located west of Tennant Creek. Peggy Rockman is one of the original or "traditional" owners of the land at Tanami Downs.

Since 1986, Peggy Rockman has been painting special stories called 'dreamings'. These include Ngatijirri (budgerigar), Warna (snake), Laju, and Ngarlu. Her artwork is kept in important places like the National Gallery of Victoria and the Art Gallery of New South Wales. She also helped write a book called Yimikirli: Warlpiri Dreamings and Histories. This book has stories in the Warlpiri language with English translations.

About Peggy Rockman's Life

Peggy Rockman was born around 1940. The exact year is not known because Indigenous Australians often mark time differently. They might remember dates by comparing them to other big events. Some records only say "Lima" as her birthplace. More detailed information suggests she was born at Mungkururrpa. This place is on Tanami Downs, a large farm in Australia's Northern Territory.

Her birth name was Yalurrngali. The name Peggy Rockman was given to her later by white government workers. 'Napaljarri' is a special "skin name" in the Warlpiri language. These names are part of a system that helps Indigenous people understand their family connections. They also show who they can marry and what totems they are linked to. These names are not like European surnames. So, 'Peggy Rockman' is her personal name.

Peggy Rockman had three older sisters. All of them married Jampu Jakamarra, and Peggy herself later married him too. Her family first lived near white Australians when she was about six to eight years old. This was a couple who were mining for gold in the Tanami Desert. Peggy worked caring for their children. During this time, she became very good at speaking English.

After the gold mine closed, Peggy Rockman's family went back to moving around the region. They then settled for a while at a farm called Gordon Downs. Around 1952, the government's Native Affairs Branch moved her family. They were taken to a new settlement called Lajamanu. This place is in the central desert, west of Tennant Creek. In Lajamanu, Peggy Rockman had to work full-time in the settlement's kitchens. She was paid with meals and sometimes with food supplies. She had three children with Jampu Jakamarra at the settlement.

Peggy Rockman was one of six children born to Milkila Jungarayi. Her sisters, Biddy Rockman Napaljarri and Mona Rockman Napaljarri, are also artists. Peggy Rockman is recognized as one of the traditional owners of Tanami Downs. This is under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976. In the past, she lived in the Lajamanu area. By 2010, she had moved to Katherine, Northern Territory.

Peggy Rockman's Art

How Indigenous Art Started

Modern Indigenous art from the western desert began in 1971. Indigenous men at Papunya started painting with help from a teacher, Geoffrey Bardon. They used acrylic paints to create designs. These designs often looked like body paintings and ground sculptures. This new art style quickly spread to other Indigenous communities in central Australia. A government art program started in 1983, helping it spread even more. By the 1980s and 1990s, this art was shown all over the world.

At first, only men were the artists. There was some resistance among men in central Australia to women painting. However, many women wanted to paint too. In the 1990s, many women began creating artworks. In western desert communities like Kintore, Yuendumu, and Balgo, people started making art specifically to show and sell.

Peggy Rockman's Art Career

Peggy Rockman was one of many artists who learned to paint in 1986. She took a course in Lajamanu. John Quinn, an adult education officer, ran the course. At first, only men attended, but eventually over a hundred community members joined. Other artists who started painting through this course include Mona Rockman Napaljarri and Louisa Napaljarri.

Western Desert artists like Peggy Rockman often paint specific 'dreamings'. These are stories or designs that they have a special connection to. For Peggy, these include Ngatijirri (budgerigar), Warna (snake), Laju, and Ngarlu.

Peggy Rockman worked with a linguist named Lee Cataldi. Together, they wrote Yimikirli: Warlpiri Dreamings and Histories. This book was supported by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. It was published in 1994. The book is 200 pages long and contains oral stories collected in Warlpiri. These stories also have English translations. Peggy Rockman was a source for these stories and helped edit the book.

Peggy Rockman is also a senior dancer among her people. She helped choose the location for a big ceremony for a 1993 TV documentary. The film was called Milli Milli by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The ceremony was called Wati Kutjarra (Two men) Dreaming. She performed in it with other artists, including Susie Bootja Bootja Napaltjarri.

Peggy Rockman's paintings have been shown in public and private art galleries. These include the Araluen Centre for Arts and Entertainment and the National Gallery of Victoria. Her work has also been shown at commercial galleries like William Mora Galleries in Melbourne. One of her paintings, Mukaki – bush plum, was part of the 2007 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award. Her artworks are owned by the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the National Gallery of Victoria.

Art Collections

• Art Gallery of New South Wales
• National Gallery of Victoria