Rene Nelson was born around 1955 at Warlu, a rockhole west of Irrunytju, near Papulankutja (Blackstone). “There are a lot of rockholes in my country. When I was little I walked in the bush with my mother and father from rockhole to rockhole. If a little rockhole got dry we would travel to one of the two main rockholes which always had water in them.”
Rene belongs to the Pitjantjatjara language and cultural group. As a young child Rene lived a traditional lifestyle in the desert. She walked with her family to the mission at Warburton where they camped for a while before continuing to Areyonga where she went to school. They camped for a while at Papulankutja, then Irrunytju. Rene settled at Irrunytju, where she raised many children and grandchildren, and is an active member of the community.
In her paintings Rene often draws on her knowledge of country, the location of important rockholes around the place of her birth. She uses layers of vibrant colours intensified by precise uniform dotting. Rene works at Irrunytju Arts where, as well as pursuing her own art practice, she assists with tjanpi projects, art markets to sell work of emerging artists and bush-trips.
The minyma pampa (old women) and minyma regularly travel into the bush in the art centre Toyota to visit tjukurpa sites to sing inma, collect punu and spinifex, gather minkulpa (native tobacco) and bushfood. Rene is skilled at hunting and cooking using traditional methods. Following fresh lizard tracks between the clumps of spinifex to the burrow Rene can tell from the tracks whether they were made by tinka (lizard) or perentie (goanna), if it is a male or female, its size, if the tracks are fresh, how fast it was going, if it is carrying eggs, the number of lizards in the burrow and if there are snakes nearby.
- Writers:
- Knights, Mary
- Date written:
- 2006
- Last updated:
- 2011
