Songlines,
or Yiri in the Walpiri language, are tracks across the landscape
created by Mythical
Aboriginal ancestors when they rose out of the dark Earth and
travelled, creating mountains, valleys, waterholes - all the physical
features of the land.
They are ceremonial songs which pass on these stories. As the
ancestors underwent various adventures, the laws for living, and
hunting skills were established. The songs, and the stories which
make up the content of the paintings, are intertwined. The land was
literally "sung" into existence.
These paintings represent various aspects of countryside in the
central and western desert regions of Australia, and are painted by
the Aboriginal people who have inhabited this land for more than
forty thousand years.
The works show traditional food gathering exploits, as well as being
depictions of the travels of creative ancestors who rose out of the
earth and shaped the landscape, while establishing the rules for
living in the period known as the Dreamtime, or 'Jukurpa.'
Some of the common symbols used are 'U' shapes, representing people;
(the track they leave when sitting), oval shaped coolamons, (wooden
food bowls also used for carrying infants), and straight lines
representing digging sticks. These symbols represent women hunting,
and spears and boomerangs next to U shapes represent men hunting.
Some edible plants are shown, but animals (emus, kangaroos) are
depicted by their tracks.
The works are aerial views of the land, and the circles are
important physical sites; mountains, valleys, waterholes etc created
by the ancestors.
The laws laid down by these ancestors are still strong today in the
remote desert areas, and are passed down during initiation and
ceremonies.
