Walu Ku Langu (Fire) Dreaming 1995

Gabriella Possum Nungurrayi made "Walu Ku Langu (Fire) Dreaming" with a delicate layering of small brushstrokes. I can almost see her building up the painting, one tiny dot at a time. The color palette is pretty earthy, but she's got these vibrant, almost neon bursts of color that catch your eye. You can see that the surface has a real texture, like the sand and earth she's depicting. It feels like a map or a landscape and reminds me of the paintings of Agnes Martin in a weird way. I wonder if she knew about her? Probably not, but that's ok. There is a feeling of movement in the painting, not just because of the subject matter, but because of the painting itself. It feels like a landscape, but it also feels like a feeling. Painting is like that - artists talk to each other across time, like a big, messy conversation.