Michael Nelson Jagamarra

This painting tells the Dreamtime story of two Kangaroo ancestors who wake up the Rainbow Snakes at Mawarriji, a sacred site near Mt. Singleton, in Michael Nelson’s homelands. The two Kangaroo Men have cooked and eaten a joey which they mistakenly believe to be another animal. The Rainbow Snakes can smell the cooking and try to kill the two Kangaroo men with a ferocious storm of wind, rain and lightning. The Kangaroo men hide out in a cave for many days until the storm passes and then continue on their journey. This painting depicts the lightning from the storm and the rainbow serpent. Michael has symbolized one of the kangaroos on its journey as the arrow and “E” shapes. The “U” shape depicts the kangaroo resting.