Angela Watson

Angela Watson was born in 1966 in Warburton, a remote community in Western Australia, and is the daughter of Angampa Martin, a renowned Irrunytju arist. As a young child, Angela and her family relocated to Pipalyatjara, where she continues to live today.

In the early 2OOOs, the first Aboriginal art studios were set up in the western region of the APY Lands. It was during this me that Angela started her arts practice. Her artworks draw influence from ‘tjukurpa’ (traditional stories), particularly those of ‘Minyma Kutjara’ (Two Women Dreaming) and the Mamu Tjukurpa (Spirits Tjukurpa). They are both important stories from her father’s country, Irrunytju, which lies just over the border from Pipalyatjara in Western Australia.

The ‘Minyma Kutjara’ story tells of two women travelling alone who are looking for fresh ‘kapi’ (water). Along their travels they have to escape the advances of a ‘wati’ (man) who stalks them. Angela’s paintings frequently show the path and camps from their journey across the lands, as well as the night-time constellations of the Milky Way that lays above.

The Mamu Tjukurpa tells the story of Alkuwari who had to travel a long distance to get food for her tjamu’s (grandfather and grandson). In her absence, the boy sets the wiltja on fire where the old man is hidden. Alkuwari rushes back and calls her family to find the boy. They become the Mamu spirits of the six Mamu rockholes, to the South of Irrunytju.

Angela works with bold, graphic colour palettes and is notable in her use of both contemporary techniques and composition to tell the traditional story.