Betty Mbitjana
Utopia – b.c. 1945
Daughter of one of Australia’s most renowned artists Minnie Pwerle and sister of celebrated artist Barbara Weir, Betty Mbitjana has become in her own right a talented and highly collectible artist. Her vivaciously coloured paintings rich in cultural significance have made quite an astonishing impact on the Aboriginal Art scene.
Through a series of lines in different colours, patterns and width, Betty paints the dance tracks in the sand created during ceremonies paying homage to their ancestors usually painted on womens upper bodies. This is called the Aweley. The rich colours and varitety of berry is a form of bush tucker picked in times of scarcity, cut into pieces, skewerred onto wood and dried to be eaten. Betty adopts a painting style similar to the late Minnie Pwerle to convey these dreamings.
Betty’s inclusion of her mothers dreaming in many of her artworks symbolizes a deep respect for her culture and family. Betty adds to this meaning by expressing her mothers dreamings through her own distinctive style, attributing a modern touch to the paintings.
Betty Mbitjana is consistently growing in popularity, as she continues to attract attention with her energetic and colourful designs painted cleanly and evenly onto the canvas. Her artwork abounds in rich traditional meaning and significance, most notably decorative body designs passed down through generations of the Pwerel and Kemarre women exclusively.