Awelye and Bush Melon
Acrylic paint on Belgian linen, unframed.
Code: TBCM 1304-12.
Frequently bought together
Awelye and Bush Melon
The gallery is small, but it punches well above its weight. Friendly, expert and hugely knowledgeable about the artists it represents and displays, there is always something of interest, at different price levels.
The Artist
Betty Club Mbitjana
c. 1954 · 2023 · Anmatyerre · Utopia, NT
Betty was born c.1954 and is the daughter of renowned artist, Minnie Pwerle and
sister to Barbara Weir, one of Australia’s most prominent artists. Betty’s bush plum and bush melon awelye (dreaming) paintings depict what Utopian women paint on their bodies and the dancing tracks made in the sand during women’s awelye ceremonies. Through these ceremonies the women pay respect to their ancestors, country and their responsibilities in their communities. For the awelye ceremonies the women paint their breasts and upper arms in red and white ochre. Betty’s work shows an aerial view of the ceremony with the waterholes, dancing
tracks, and pairs of breasts moving as a woman dances.
Betty was married to Paddy Club who died in 2012. She lived Utopia and sometimes Alice Springs.
