Shorty Jangala Robertson

The site depicted in this painting is Puyurru, west of Yuendumu. In the usually dry creek bed are the water soakages or naturally occurring wells. Two Jangala men, rainmakers, sang the rain, unleashing a giant storm. It travelled across the country, lightning striking the land. This storm met up with a storm from Wapurtali, to the west. It was picked up by a bird and carried it further west until the load became too heavy for it to bear and it dropped that storm at Purlungyanu, where it created a giant soakage. At Puyurru the bird dug up a giant snake, Wanayarra, the snake carried water with it and created a giant lake, Jillyiumpa. There is an outstation there that Shorty’s family lives at today. In this painting the artist has used straight lines to represent the ngawarra (flood waters) running through the landscape and the bars joining the long lines represent mangkurdu (clouds).