[Wirrpanda's works are] incredibly beautiful but what they show is this model for adaptive, social living and the sharing of space in a harmonious and collaborative way and I think it is a fantastic metaphor for ways we might think about our future.
- Rachel Kent, 2021
MULKUN WIRRPANDA was a senior artist of the Dhudi-Djapu clan from Dhuruputjpi, Eastern Arnhem Land, a classificatory daughter of the late Dhäkiyarr Wirrpanda, and a mother (by kinship) to senior artist and clan leader, Djambawa Marawili. Wirrpanda painted Dhudi-Djapu miny'tji (ceremonial clan designs) which depicted her land at Dhuruputjpi, including the areas of Yalata and Darrangi. As the eldest and most knowledgeable of her clan, she was recognised as a leader – one of the few Yolngu women to have this status. Wirrpanda was an early practitioner of experimenting with miny'tji for aesthetic rather than ceremonial purposes. Using ochres, she painted on bark, larrakitj (memorial poles) and yidaki (didgeridoo), and was a talented carver, weaver and print maker.