Sally Gabori 2005 – 2012: Danda ngijinda dulk, danda ngijinda malaa, danda ngad – This is my Land, this is my Sea. This is who I am

Dates & times

Sat 30 March — Sun 5 May 2013

Image: Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori
Dibirdibi Country
2012, synthetic polymer paint on linen, 136 x 136 cm. ANU Art Collection

 

Mornington Island-based artist Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori is one of this country’s leading contemporary painters.  Born c. 1924 on Bentinck Island, Queensland, Gabori had little contact with non-Kaiadilt people until the 1940s, when she was forced to leave her native island for Mornington Island. Throughout her life Gabori has been an accomplished producer of traditional Pandanus fibre and Hibiscus bark handicrafts, yet it is only since 2005 – when she began painting on canvas – that she came to national attention.  Gabori’s intensely colourful and vibrant canvases express the landscape of her tropical homeland. The intuitive way she mixes colour on the canvas, blending and bleeding from one shape to another, continually reappraising forms to set them in dynamic relationships, gives a sense of tidal fluidity that corresponds to the stories associated with her country, Bentinck Island.

Sally Gabori’s works feature in important collections in major institutions in Australia and internationally. This large-scale exhibition draws together works from collections all around Australia.  It is presented in association with Alcaston Gallery, Melbourne and Mornington Island Art.

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Updated:  21 May 2013/ Responsible Officer:  DHG Director/ Page Contact:  Drill Hall Gallery