The Dreamings and The Artist

The Dreamtime is the Aboriginal understanding of the world, of its creation, and of its great stories. The Dreamtime is the beginning of the knowledge, from which came the laws of existence. For survival these laws must be observed.

The Dreaming is an Aboriginal term used to describe the relations and balance between the spiritual, natural and moral elements of the world. It can be understood as a story about some journey, place, animal, food, season, initiation or event.

The Artist paint their Dreamings. The stories are repeated over and over again. Aboriginal artists rarely “name” their paintings. The titles therefore are representational of the theme or location. That’s why you’ll notice our Aboriginal artists’ recurring themes. Gloria Petyarre’s signature theme is “Bush Medicine Leaves”, Emily Pwerle’s known for her “Body Paint”, Kudditji Kngwarreye for his “My Country” and Ronnie Tjampitjinpa for his “Fire Dreaming to name a few.