Walu (Minmya Collaboration)

This collaborative painting was created by the senior women of Papulankutja Artists during the Walu Camp held on Country in 2025. Working together on a single canvas, the artists combined their individual knowledge and family connections to depict Walu and the surrounding Country, an important cultural landscape north of Papulankutja (Blackstone) in the Gibson Desert.

Walu is a large flat rock with deep rockholes that collect water after rain. For countless generations it has been an important meeting place where Ngaanyatjarra families gathered to camp, swim, collect bush foods and medicines, grind native seeds into flour, and share stories. The smooth stone surfaces where women traditionally ground seeds can still be seen today.

Walu also holds important Tjukurrpa (Dreaming). One well-known story tells of Pirriya, the young orphan boy who stole the heart of an emu after his uncles returned from hunting. As he ran across the rock, the emu’s blood spilled onto the stone, leaving a trail that can still be seen today. Carrying the heart, the boy transformed into a powerful whirlwind that swept across the Country, giving rise to the winds that remain part of Walu’s story.

Rather than depicting one single narrative, this painting brings together the many stories, camps, rockholes and food gathering places associated with Walu. The different patterns and forms reflect the women’s deep cultural knowledge of this Country and the many journeys, activities and ancestral events connected to the site.

Painted together on Country, the work celebrates the passing of knowledge between generations and the enduring cultural significance of Walu as a place of water, family, ceremony and memory.