User:Natweinstein/Kimberley (Western Australia)

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Rock art in the Kimberley is some of the oldest in Australia and could date back 40,000 years. The best known examples of rock art from the Kimberley are Wandjina and Gwion Gwion. The earliest form of Kimberley rock art was hand stencils, and rock art continued up to the 1960s when Wandjina were still being repainted.

Some of Australia's best known indigenous artists came from the Kimberley. These artists painted in a style unique to this area, a style initially associated with the Krill Krill ceremony but later known as the Kimberley Art Movement. These artists include Rover Thomas, Jaminji Paddy Bedford and Queenie McKenzie.

Art and culture still flourishes today, with many contemporary artists being supported by the Mowanjum Aboriginal Arts and Cultural centre.

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The Kimberley region is extremely rich in art, mainly that of Indigenous rock art. Considering the area's size, it is no surprise that there are tens of thousands of rock art examples coming from a variety of different cultural groups within the region. The diversity of peoples has allowed for many different art styles to develop with some of the most widely known examples being Wandjina and Gwion Gwion. In addition to the variation in styles, there are almost equally diverse fabrication techniques. The earliest form of Kimberley rock art was hand stencils, but techniques such as engraving, painting, scratchwork, pecking, drawing, and later beeswax applique have also been used. In addition to the varying styles and techniques, there are united visual depictions that reflect the changes and persistence within the cultural and natural environment.

The changing and expanding complexity of styles and techniques has been prominent for roughly 16 ka and has caught the attention of many, paving the way for mass amounts of archaeological and anthropological research. Currently, there are major collaborative efforts to try and figure out an accurate timeline for the region’s rock art, while still preserving the cultural traditions. The desire to uncover the original dates of the art has become increasingly more important. For many researchers in the region, they run into a small barrier, this obstacle is the re-touching of the rock art. Much of the rock art in the area has been gone over with similar or alternative methods to preserve the art, add to it, or enhance it. That being said, when the rock art is modified, the date is also altered; making it increasingly difficult to determine the ultimate age of the art itself.

Professor Andy Gleadow from the University of Melbourne has been leading Australia's most substantial rock art dating project congruently with many other groups such as the Australian National Science and Technology Organisation, The Universities of Western Australia, Wollongong, and Manchester, and the Balanggarra Aboriginal Corporation in hopes to understand further the region's rock art. Their focus was centered around rock shelters as they are locations that contribute heavily to preservation. When the team was excavating a rock shelter in Kimberley's northeastern territory on the Unghango clan estate in Balanggarra country, they found a two-meter-long painting of a kangaroo on the ceiling. This finding was key to understanding the dates that coincide with rock painting styles. The oldest category known as the Irregular Infill Animal or the Naturalistic period is responsible for the region's life-size animal depictions. The kangaroo falls into this category and has become a major player in determining a st. Luckily, there were remains of mud wasp nests that could be used for dating. The analysis of the samples provided a date between 17,500 years old and 17,100 years old, making the kangaroo rock art the oldest in Australia.

The cultural significance of rock art is one of the main driving factors in its research. Based on oral accounts from Aboriginal people along with other data, it has been confirmed that many of the works found in the region that have been re-touched maintain a much deeper significance than just expression. There is a complex performative aspect that goes hand-in-hand with the art that we see today. According to oral testimonies from Aboriginal people, the re-touching or re-marking actions are performance and reiterate a story that aligns with the art. The performance is a way for people to reconnect with the art in both past and present. While the notion of a performance and a continuation of creation elucidates the concept that it may not be about the result, but rather the process to get there and the story woven within it.