Jimmy Barrmula Yunupinu Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, Australia, 1963-2018

In the late nineties Jimmy Barrmula Yunupina worked on themes from the Dhuwa side on larger barks. Though originally a bark painter he ceased artmaking in the mid-90s due to health issues. In 2017 he resumed his creative endeavours by sketching with pen on discarded print proofs. Yunupinu’s mother was the famous Rirratjitiu artist Dhuwarrwarr. He was initiated into the full depth of Yoltiu ceremony as a young man and held an important role in the hidden world of Yoltiu Rom (law). As a young school boy he had been a significant contributor to the book, Aboriginal Children’s History of Australia, which foreshadowed the figurative illustrative style of his later career.

 

He tragically died in late 2018 after his pen sketches had earned him the offer of a solo show at a major institution, but before that show could be held.