Tjukurrtjanu: Origins of Western Desert Art

Wallangkarri cultivated a unique palette, generally choosing to paint on a black background with semi-transparent dots in a range of soft pinks and earthy greens. He worked slowly, usually for no more than an hour or two at a time and with a lightness of touch, putting emphasis on a mosaic of vegetation within a conceptual map of his country. (John Kean, 2011)

Mick Wallangkarri was born at Watikinpirri, west of the Eagle Dreaming site of Karrinyarra, near Watulpunyu and became a senior custodian of these three significant sites in his country. Wallangkarri worked as a stockman on Glen Helen and Narwietooma Stations east of Papunya, before moving to Papunya where he lived for the rest of his life.

A pensioner at Papunya, who was known as 'Old Mick', Wallangkarri shared with Tom Onion Tjapangati the custodianship of the Honey Ant Dreaming, authorising its representation on the Papunya school walls, a crucial moment in the genesis of the Western Desert art movement. He was an enthusiastic painter, driven to paint by his ritual seniority. He had been painting on the body and the ground, in ritual contexts, for many decades as is reflected in his earliest works composed of graphic designs silhouetted on the dark backgrounds of rough-cut boards. He was the first Papunya Tula artist whose work was purchased by the National Gallery of Australia.