Eubena Nampitjin, Untitled, 1996

Lot description

EUBENA NAMPITJIN 1925 - 2013 Untitled, 1996 acrylic on linen 100 x 50 cm cataloguing details verso: Eubena, Warlayirti Artists, P/S, 1000x500, 392/96 PROVENANCE Warlayirti Artists, Western Australia, Cat No. 392/96 acquired from the above during art collecting trip 1996 The Collection of Dame Marie Bashir AD CVO and Sir Nicholas Shehadie AC OBE, Sydney, New South Wales Accompanied by a photograph of the artwork in the Art Centre Eubena Nampitjin's paintings hold a strong sense of place, shaped by lived knowledge of Country and its key sites. Working through Warlayirti Artists in Balgo, she developed a direct and confident visual language that draws attention to water sources, movement across the land and the relationships that connect them. Her works do not describe landscape in a literal sense, but instead reflect how it is understood, remembered and navigated. This painting centres on a significant site, with a dominant form set within a surrounding field that suggests the wider terrain. The composition can be read as a concentration of activity around a place of importance, where shifts in colour and density indicate areas of focus and passage. The surface moves between areas of intensity and openness, allowing the eye to travel across the painting in a measured way, echoing the experience of moving through Country. Painted in 1996, the work sits within a strong period of Nampitjin's practice, where clarity of form and a controlled use of colour create depth without overcrowding the surface. The painting carries both a practical understanding of place and a broader cultural framework, held in balance. What is presented is the outward expression of a site and its presence, while deeper meanings remain with those who hold that knowledge. © EUBENA NAMPITJIN / Copyright Agency, 2026