LATEST WORK
Kelvin Kemarre Ladd – Ilenty (Galahs)
$1,070.00
OUR ART CENTRE
The Artists of Ampilatwatja community was established in 1999, 325km north east of Mparntwe (Alice Springs) in the Northern Territory. Ampilatwatja lies on Aherrenge country, the land of the Alyawarre people.
The work produced by our Aboriginal artists is unique and recognisably distinct from other Aboriginal artistic communities. The paintings pay homage to the significance and use of traditional bush medicine, allowing an insight into our community. We depict the traditional knowledge of dreaming and country through the translation of waterholes and soaks, bush medicines, mountains and sand hills.
Congratulations
Congratulations to Elizabeth Ngwarraye Bonney of Artists of Ampilatwatja who has won the prestigious Vincent Lingiari Art Award celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Aboriginal Land Rights Act for her painting, My grandmother’s country.
For many years the traditional healer painted together with her mother Eileen Bonney, the last of the original claimants of the Wakaya Alyawarre land claim that was handed back only last year.
“My mother has been fighting for this land for 40 years, one of the longest standing land claims in the Northern Territory, and now she is passing it over. So we can pass it over to our children.
When I was young I would go to this country with my mother. I take my daughter and grandchildren to this country. This land holds stories and when we are there, we feel them.
I paint to keep my country alive, so we can know and teach our young ones, our grandchildren.”
– Elizabeth Ngwarraye Bonney
The painting depicts Elizabeth’s connection to her country and her memories of being on country with her mother and now her own daughter and grandchildren. This is the fourth time the Central Land Council and Desart have joined forces to present the award and the first time two judges chose the winner among a record 56 entries.
Museum and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory curator Rebekah Raymond and the Strehlow Research Centre’s Joel Liddle had the tough task of deciding which entry best responds to this year’s theme. They chose the winning work because it so beautifully reflects a deep connection to country, a connection that is timeless and ever present.
View all works in person at the Araluen Arts Centre or online at www.desertmob.com
The 2026 Vincent Lingiari Art Award is open until 18th October 2026.