Tirra lumaik
Matilda Nona
8 - 30 March 2024Image: Matilda Nona holding pieces of cut mangrove on Badu Island. Process image. Photo: Keemon Williams
'Tirra lumaik' is the movement of the north westerly Kuki wind that blows from November to March each year on Badu Island. This wind will continue to build in search of its direction—from the North, South, East and West. When Kuki finds its path, it will blow cyclonic winds and storms. Much like the swell of this searching wind, Tirra lumaik traces a significant intersection of Matilda Nona’s practice, as she builds upon her central lino carving practices and traditional methods of printmaking, to experiment with natural pigments and sand-painting practices endemic to Badu. Through the utilisation of cultural symbolism, totems and personal motifs, such as shells, native fauna and the Koedal (crocodile), Matilda recounts and expands upon First Nations storytelling to provide new and innovative perspectives on Torres Strait Islander culture.
Tirra lumaik is Matilda’s first solo exhibition and charts both her personal, artistic and spiritual journey as she comes into her own.
Outer Space Main Gallery
Corner of Brunswick St & Berwick St
420 Brunswick Street, Judith Wright Arts Centre
Fortitude Valley, QLD 4006
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Exhibition Text
Written by Adam Ford, a writer and art historian who works as Assistant Curator, Indigenous Australian Art, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art.
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Documentation by Louis Lim, 2024.
Image: Matilda Nona in her studio on Badu Island, painting on a pandanus mat with Koedal (crocodile). Process image. Photo: Keemon Williams
Matilda Malujewel Nona is an Argan artist from Badu Island whose practice seeks to record and preserve cultural traditions and ancestral stories from the Torres Strait Islands. Through crafted piment and natural ink dye processes, Matilda's printmaking and experimental painting practice is inextricably woven with the spiritual and natural landscapes in her surrounding environment. Matilda is currently a co-director of the Badu Arts Centre. Her work is also in several private and institutional collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art and the National Gallery of Victoria.
Process images
Image: Matilda Nona studio visit, Badu Island. Process images. Photo: Keemon Williams
This exhibition is supported by Loupe Imaging. The exhibition launch is supported by Half Moon Wine Store & Felons Brewing.
