Queenie McKenzie

The hills in this work are associated with the Bowerbird dreaming. The bowerbird still lives here today and the artist has depicted a nest site between the hills and two boab trees in the top of the work. The two small rectangular shapes on the left are bowers and the small dots represent all the shiny objects that the male bowerbird collects to attract his female companion. This work was executed while in Darwin in August 1998, Queenie led a group of Gija artists and dancers who painted the dance boards and performed the Gurirr Gurirr ceremony as a tribute to Rover Thomas at the opening of the NATSI art awards. Rover had sadly passed away earlier that same year. This painting is one of the three final paintings from Queenie McKenzie’s estate.