Freshwater Prawn by Jill Yirrindili
Artist
Jill Yirrindili
(1955)
Datebefore 2006
Object number00040538
NameSculpture
MediumWoven Pandanus, bark, pigment
DimensionsDisplay dimensions: 910 x 110 mm
90 x 130 x 925 mm
90 x 130 x 925 mm
ClassificationsArt
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionA freshwater prawn made of woven pandanus leaves by Jill Yirrindili. The body of the ray has been painted and filled with red bark pieces. Prawns are a major food source in coastal waters and estuaries this sculpture has been skilfully woven to represent a prawn. Jill Yirrindili is an artist from South Central Arnhem Land, Northern Territory.HistoryWorks in fibre have always been strong from this area, known for their aesthetic use of bush dyes and conical fish traps. The Maningrida region is located on the North Central Arnhem Land coast of the Arafura Sea, on the estuary of the Liverpool River. The Kunibídji people are the traditional landowners of this country. The name Maningrida is an Anglicised version of the Kunibídji name "Manayingkarírra" which comes from the phrase "Mane djang karirra" meaning "the place where the Dreaming changed shape'.
Despite having a long cultural and practical history, the use of fibre has become a medium for fresh expression in the Maningrida region. Fibre artists there have become innovative and are creating new forms such as jelly fish, sting rays 'camp dogs' etc.
SignificanceThe importance of fibre objects are linked in all areas of life not only for everday living but also personified ancestral events and actions reinforcing connections to land. All woven works have distinct regional characteristics, such as designs the colour of dyes and the actual material/fibres used such as the type of grasses, flax, pandanus and spunanimalfur. Traditionally most fibre production centred on utilitarian and ceremonial objects. Today artists are adapting fibre techniques to create innovative objects relating to ancestral events and everyday themes.
