Gloria Petyarre 1942-2021
Gloria Petyarre, also known as Gloria Pitjara, was one of Australia's most celebrated Indigenous artists. Born at Mosquito Bore on Atnangkere country in Utopia, Northern Territory, she belonged to the Anmatyerre language group and hailed from a distinguished family of artists, including her aunt Emily Kame Kngwarreye and sisters Kathleen, Ada Bird, Nancy, and Violet Petyarre.
Gloria began her artistic career in 1977 as a founding member of the Utopia Women’s Batik Group. Her early works on silk gained national and international attention. In 1988, she transitioned to acrylic painting as part of the CAAMA "Summer Project", which marked a pivotal moment in the rise of contemporary Utopia art.
Her Dreaming stories include Mountain Devil Lizard, Pencil
Yam, Awelye (women’s ceremonial designs), and her most
iconic motif—Bush Medicine Leaves. These swirling, rhythmic
works represent leaves used in traditional Anmatyerre healing
practices. The movement, energy, and optical intensity of her
brushwork became her signature and positioned her as a
leading figure in contemporary Aboriginal abstraction.
Gloria gained international acclaim, with a 1991 solo exhibition
in New York, and in 1999 became the first Indigenous artist to
win the prestigious Wynne Prize at the Art Gallery of New
South Wales. That same year, she received a Full Fellowship
Grant from the Australia Council. In 2009, she became the
first Indigenous Australian artist commissioned by Hermès,
with her Bush Medicine Leaves featured on their silk scarves.
Gloria Petyarre passed away in June 2021, leaving a profound
legacy in both Indigenous and contemporary Australian art.
Her legacy endures as a cultural ambassador, master
colourist, and visionary of Aboriginal art.