Yolŋu art: blazing countless trails
This article is drawn from Mayatili Marika’s W. Wanambi Distinguished Lecture at the University of Virginia in February 2024 alongside the Wan̠ambi-led exhibition Mad̠ayin: Eight Decades of Aboriginal Australian Bark Painting from Yirrkala (touring the USA, 2022–2025). Other current and groundbreaking exhibitions of Yolŋu art include Ms N Marawili’s bark paintings on permanent display in the Oceania Gallery at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Yolŋu power: the art of Yirrkala at the Art Gallery of NSW (until 6 October) and strong Yolŋu representation in 65,000 Years: a short history of Australian art (until 22 November) at the Potter Museum in Melbourne: all elevate and amplify the voices of Yolŋu land, water and lineage.
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