MICHELLE ANDERSON — KANPALA
27.05.2026—
20.06.2026
MICHELLE ANDERSON EMERGES FROM AN EXCEPTIONAL LINEAGE OF GREAT SPINIFEX PAINTERS. HER TWO GRANDMOTHERS, MYRTLE PENNINGTON AND CARLENE WEST, QUICKLY ROSE TO ACCLAIM DESPITE THE BREVITY OF THEIR CAREERS, HARNESSING BOTH THE COLOUR AND DRAMA OF THE TJUKURPA TO REPRESENT THEIR WORLD AND ITS FORMATION. AS A YOUNG MOTHER, MICHELLE WATCHED ON AS HER GRANDMOTHERS QUICKLY BEGAN TO BEND COLOUR AND FORM TO EXPRESS SUNG STORIES THROUGH THE VISUAL REALM.
Michelle’s role as a quiet observer of her grandmother’s brilliance shifted profoundly when she became the primary carer for Myrtle. Spending her days beside Myrtle at the Spinifex Arts studio, Michelle moved gradually from witness to participant, absorbing the rhythms of her grandmother’s practice as stories, memory, and Country were translated onto canvas.
I was the carer for her, I looked after her when she got very sick and couldn’t walk. I would change her, help her to the art centre and with everything she did. She passed away at home, in peace.”
— Michelle Anderson
As she painted, Myrtle began sharing deeper stories of Country, Tjukurrpa, and memories of life pre-contact — histories carried through voice, gesture, and paint, entrusted to Michelle through the quiet intimacy of their time together in the studio. Myrtle would relish having her granddaughter by her side, commanding the subtle generational transference of Tjukurrpa to her granddaughter.
I saw her painting, and I always brought her to the art centre and sat down with her when she was painting, and she was talking about her home (Kanpa), you know, where she was born.”
— Michelle Anderson
As Myrtle’s frailty crept up on her, Michelle began to assist her in her practice, completing collaborative works with her grandmother who had been slowly and carefully educating Michelle in everything she knew. After Myrtle passed away, Michelle continued to paint, reconnecting with her grandmother and her ancestral home with each mark.
Michelle’s paintings depict life in Spinifex Country.
MICHELLE ANDERSON WITH OLIVIA SPROULL, 2O26
I’m always painting Kanpa. Her place. It’s on the other side of Miramiratjara, right there in the middle of Spinifex, on the other side, north of Ilkurlka.”
— Michelle Anderson
The old people would walk from rockhole to rockhole collecting wild foods on the way. They knew the bush plants that were good to eat, how to make flour by grinding the small millet seeds they collected and then baking bread on the fire. They knew the special plants for medicine. This country is good country.”
— Michelle Anderson
Get the latest updates & news direct to your inbox…