• Wardapi Jukurrpa (Goanna Dreaming)
  • Wardapi Jukurrpa (Goanna Dreaming)
  • Wardapi Jukurrpa (Goanna Dreaming)
  • Wardapi Jukurrpa (Goanna Dreaming)

Sylvannia Spencer

Wardapi Jukurrpa (Goanna Dreaming)

  

    • Acrylic on Canvas
    • Dimensions: 40cm x 30cm
    • Cat No. 745-18

Sylvannia Spencer, skin name Nungarrayi, is the granddaughter of a pioneer woman of Warnayaka Art, Lily Hargraves. For a young artist, Nungarrayi has developed her own path of artistic success and received widespread acclaim for the detailed and intricate patterning that is a feature of her work. As a young teenager, Nungarrayi learnt the stories of her Jukurrpa (Dreaming) from Lily Hargraves. Nungarrayi spent years under Lily's tutelage, learning to bring the Tanami desert and the stories of creation to life through painting. Nungarrayi has refined her techniques and developed her own unique style that has enabled her artwork to become highly sought after. Typically, she paints the Jukurrpa of goanna, her father's story. She favours shades of deep red and brown, the predominant colours of the desert. Her artwork is instantly recognisable for its presence of fine detailed markings that represent the patterning of a goanna's skin and its footprints in the sand. Much of Nungarrayi's respect and education of Country came from the stories and skills she learnt from family at her ancestral homeland, Yartula Yartula, which lies approximately 350 kilometres south of her home in Lajamanu. This tells the story of hunting goanna. This is mainly a woman’s job. They are found in holes in the ground. The women do this. They teach the young ones of their own skin groups. The women set fire to the spinifex grass to find the holes. They use their digging sticks to dig the goannas out of their deep holes.


Lajamanu has a population of around 900 Warlpiri people. The older generation see Warnayaka as an avenue to achieve a number of needs that are present in their community. At the centre these elders still create their dot paintings. The most important thing expressed by members, is the need to preserve and pass on the cultural significance of Warlpiri, the culture of the people of Lajamanu, which encompasses not only art, but includes language, social structure, law and country. In doing so it is understood that excellence in art, prosperity from art sales, employment opportunities and preservation of pride in being Warlpiri will result. The art centre is a Warlpiri corporation and is staffed mainly by the children of the older generation of Indigenous Lajamanu residents who remember their first contact with white Australia. They maintain the computerised data base and run the art centre production. Older and younger community members produce Aboriginal dot paintings and make wooden artefacts. The centre is a place for a cup of tea and a song and dance, and then a trip into the Spinifex desert to look for goanna and lizards or to collect bush coconut, bush banana, yams and bush honey from native bees.


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1. Monday is the day we do our shipping/postage each week unless Express Shipping is requested at the time of purchase. If for some reason there is a delay and your item isn’t able to be shipped the Monday after you purchased it we will be in touch.

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3. Whilst we use Australia Post services where possible, for large, heavy or high value artworks we use a third party courier service. We will advise you of this at the time of purchase, or get in touch as soon as possible if on reflection using a courier seems more appropriate for your artwork. Once we have organised a quote it will be the courier who gets in touch to organise delivery times closer to the date, but we are always here to support you throughout the process! 

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