Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri

Painter Warlimpirrnga Tjapaltjarri harnesses dots and lines to create dizzying compositions that express his spiritual relationship with and ancestral connection to the landscape of Western Australia. A Pintupi artist and healer, Warlimpirrnga’s depictions of sacred sites are inspired by memories of his upbringing in a semi-nomadic family of hunter/gatherers. His works have drawn international acclaim, and his pieces have been shown at major exhibitions like Documenta in 2012. Warlimpirrnga’s painting Mamultjunkunya (2009)—featured at Documenta and shown in such museums as the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art and the Pérez Art Museum Miami—sold for £93,750 ($130,920) at a 2018 Sotheby’s auction. The detailed patterns of Warlimpirrnga’s paintings seem in constant motion, and his dense swirls are encoded with Indigenous knowledge. His work can be found in museums like the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney; the Harvard Art Museums in Cambridge; and the Toledo Museum of Art.