The background dots in Glady's painting incorporate her Bush Plum Dreaming and forms of food and life giving substances. The bones in this painting represent the human rib, leg and arm bones. It is a very strong Dreaming of how the earth gives life, sustains life and ultimately takes back life.
Glady Kemarre
 | Born: c 1951 Deceased: 2016 Language Group: Anmatyerre Country: Ahalpere, Utopia Region, North East of Alice Springs Medium: Acrylic on Canvas and Linen, Batik on Silk, Wood Sculptures Subjects: Anwekety (Conkerberry or Bush Plum), Awelye (Women's Ceremony and Body Paint Designs), Life and Death, Bush Tucker, Narrative hunting & family scenes |
Glady Kemarre, a well known Utopia artist, began her career in the late 1970's with the medium of batik. Over 80 other Utopia women participated in this practice for over a decade before the acrylics on canvas movement swept Utopia in the late 1980's. Glady swiftly changed mediums, as did many others, to the ease and liberation of acrylics. Having painted now for us for many years, Glady has become known to us as a fine dot artist with a quiet yet humorous spirit! Though her ability to speak English is not fluent, she is fun to converse with and always has an intelligible glint in her eyes. Glady usually resides with her close relatives Kathleen Ngale, Polly Ngale and Angelina Ngale in Utopia. The art of painting is a very social practice for Glady and the women of her community. Glady rarely paints anything other than the Anwekety Story, whereby fine dot work represents the sweet black conkerberry (anwekety in Glady's native language).
Collections
The National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Mbantua Gallery Permanent Collection, Alice Springs
The Holmes á Court Collection, Perth
Awards and Accolades
| 2008 | Centrefold Spread, Mbantua Gallery & Cultural Museum Newsletter, Issue 22 |
Exhibitions
| 1990 | Utopia - A Picture story, an exhibition of 88 Works on Silk from the Holmes á Court Collection by Utopia Artists which toured Eire and Scotland |
| 1994 | Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Centre, Alice Springs, NT |
| 1998 | Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, N.T |
| 2004 | Evolution of Utopia, Mbantua Gallery Cultural Museum, Alice Springs |
| 2008 | Emily and Her Legacy, Hillside Gallery, Tokyo with Coo-ee Art Sydney in conjunction with the opening of the landmark retrospective exhibition Utopia - the Genius of Emily Kngwarreye at the National Art Centre, Tokyo, Japan |
| 2014 | Narrativa Herióca - Pintura Aborígine do Deserto Australiano - Renaissance Hotel, São Paulo, Brazil |
| 2014 | Arca Urbana, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| 1997 | Emily Kngwarreye, Gallery Savah, Sydney, New South Wales |
Further References
| Brody, A. | 1990, Utopia: a Picture Story, 88 Silk Batiks from the Robert Holmes á Court Collection, Heytesbury Holdings Ltd, Perth |