BRISBANE.- Soft pastel hues and multiple layers of colourings form the common thread in an Aboriginal art exhibition by a dynamic artistic sister trio showing at Mitchell Fine Art in Fortitude Valley.

Utopia is the traditional land of the Alyawarre and Anmatyerre Aboriginal people, located 230kms north east of Alice Springs in Central Australia. This region has been and still is home to some of Australia’s most distinguished female artistic talents.

Such is the case with the Ngale sisters – Polly, Kathleen and Angelina. Living and creating in the remote landscape of Australia’s central desert, their paintings share knowledge as they portray depictions of country and important flora and fauna. Each of the paintings evoke a sense of country, its importance, and the artists intimate knowledge of the natural and cultural elements of traditional Aboriginal life.

Today’s contemporary Aboriginal artworks are an extension of tradition. The mediums may have changed but the purpose is fundamentally the same.

The modern art movement in Utopia began in the late 1970s with a group of Anmatyerre women participating in a series of batik-making fabric workshops. Starting their respective painting journeys in the 1980’s, the Ngale sisters rose to prominence over the subsequent years as artists of great ability and influence. Their paintings have been exhibited and collected extensively within Australia and overseas.

Created between 2008 and 2010, this exhibition showcases the artistic expression and cultural knowledge of the three sisters. It includes the majestic 195 x 294cm ‘Anwekety (Bush Plum Dreaming)’ painting by octogenarian Polly Ngale.