The Museum of Contemporary Art, Australia

Wamud Namok (Bardayal “Lofty” Nadjamerrek AO)

The Kluge Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection loaned eight works to the Museum of Contemporary Art exhibition Wamud Namok (Bardayal “Lofty” Nadjamerrek AO). This exhibition presented the art and life of Bardayal ‘Lofty’ Nadjamerrek AO, a highly respected senior artist, ceremony man, and traditional knowledge-holder who lived and worked in the escarpment country of Western Arnhem Land. Bardayal painted as part of ceremony and for a Western art audience, and his repertoire quickly evolved from single figure artworks to more complex ceremonial narratives. This exhibition traced how rock art, the longest continuous art tradition in the world and one of the oldest forms of human expression, inspired his professional practice, particularly his characteristic ‘X-ray’ painting style. Included in the exhibition was a large wall painting commissioned and painted by Bardayal’s immediate family, revealing how truly inspiring and influential he was to his community and to the art world.

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