Wildbird Dreaming

Aboriginal Art from the Central Deserts of Australia

by Nadine Amadio and Richard Kimber

photography by Barry Skipsey

Greenhouse Publications, 1988, [First Edition], ISBN 0864361084, full colour reproductions throughout, hardcover, dustjacket

Very Good Condition, a little edge and shelf wear, a little rubbing and bumping to edges and corners, no inscriptions. Dustjacket shows a little edge and shelf wear with a little rubbing, bumping, chipping and small tears, small part missing at back (see photographs)

“In recent times a great, new, but ancient art form has excited the world with paintings of tremendous presence, energy and life force.  These are the paintings from the Aboriginal artists of the Central Deserts of Australia, known collectively as the Papunya School.
These powerful and moving paintings speak strongly of the still-living mythology of the desert Aborigines and their deep involvement with their traditional territories.  The paradox of Papunya art is, that is rock, ground and body painting, it is the ancient traditional art of a people who have lived in Australia for over 40,000 years.  Now transferred to canvas and sent out to the world in its modern form, Papunya painting has existed for less than two decades.  In this work, leading Australian critic, Nadine Amadio, brings to the reader an approachable introduction to the paintings and, in underlining the bond between the artists and their land, arouses a greater awareness of the needs of today’s Aborigines.  Northern Territory writer Richard Kimber, who has a unique and trusted relationship with the Aborigines, gives the reader a wonderfully accessible history of European contact with the Central Desert Aborigines.  His original work brings a new vision to our current knowledge, while the sensitive photographer and songwriter Barry Skipsey reveals the contemporary miracle of Papunya art with his fine reproductions of the paintings.”