026
Aby Loy
Alyawarre/Eastern Anmatyerre (born 1972)
Bush Leaf, 2005
synthetic polymer paint on Belgian linen
61 x 61 cm
PROVENANCE
Commissioned by Galerie Australis, Adelaide, cat.no. GAAL03051351; accompanied
by original certificate of authenticity
Documentation reads
Under Eastern Anmatyerr Law, Abie Loy Kemarre has the right to portray
several Dreamings. These include the Bush Hen (Turkey) Dreaming and Bush
Leaf Dreaming.
The Bush Leaf Dreaming is an inheritance from Abie’s father’s
side. The bush leaf grows in a swamp near some Sand-hills close to the
Utopia region in Abie’s grandfather’s country and it is known
for its wonderful curative properties. These bush leaves are able
to cure a whole range of illnesses including colds, headaches, and sores.
The Bush Leaf, as a Dreaming, is closely associated with women, and is
a shape-shifter, a state-changer, possessing the ability to transform
herself from her bush leaf-form into a woman and back into a leaf again.
The aspect of the Bush Leaf Dreaming that Abie paints belongs to women
only.
The accompanying Dreaming narrative contains a good deal of information
about the precise locations of this leaf, in arid parts of the country.
The bush leaf is painfully shy. When people touch the leaves or pick this
leaf she dies of embarrassment, because of the shame of being touched.
Yet magically, although the leaf withers under the gaze and touch of people
who covet the leaves of this plant, she has the capacity to regenerate
herself and brings herself back to life after.
This story not only discloses some of the properties of this fascinating
plant, but acts as a metaphor for the artist herself: a young woman who
in some circumstances is painfully shy, but whose artistic talent is potentially
a source of great fecundity.
© Copyright Dr. Christine Nicholls, Senior Lecturer, Australian Studies,
Postgraduate Coordinator, Department of Cultural Studies, School of Humanities,
Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia. 2003