bernadine johnson
Bernadine Kemarre is a rising star in contemporary Aboriginal art. She was born in 1974 in the Ltyentye Apurte Community (Santa Teresa), approximately 80km east of Alice Springs, Northern Territory, and had a traditional upbringing before attending school in Alice Springs.Bernadine comes from a family of famous artists, including Abie Loy and Josie Petrick Kemarre, who have emerged from the Utopia area in the NT. Her sister-in-law is Anna Price Petyarre, one of Central Desert's most sought-after artists. From a young age, she learned the art of painting her dreams, ceremonies, and important bush foods onto canvas.Bernadine lives with her husband, Steven, and their children in Napperby Station, NT. Her artworks are intricate and colorful, and she is an artist sure to succeed.
Artwork Story
The medicine bush leaves depicted were originally of the Kurrajong tree, of which some 30 varieties date back 50 million years. They scale from small shrubs to massive trees some 30 metres in height. In the larger trees, their trunks are used to store water, but the leaves have medicinal purposes.
The women of Utopia, the remote region far to the west of Alice Springs, where Jeannie’s people gather the bush leaves, boil them and then mash them with animal fats (kangaroo, emu or goanna) making a medicinal poultice or paste that can last for many months. The paste is used to heal many afflictions such as bites, wounds, skin infections, rashes and skin cancer. The bush leaves are also boiled in hot water to make an infusion or healing tea. Other preparations were used as insect repellent or were thrown into the water to stun the fish.
The desirability of the artworks
Admirers of the medicine bush leaf paintings often observe their mesmerizing attraction. People are captivated by how the paintings appear to be in motion in front of their eyes, like the leaves on the canvas are blowing in the wind. Many buyers and collectors of medicine bush leaf artworks both in Australia, America and Europe are medical specialists who buy the works to hang in their consulting rooms to show Aboriginal artwork with medical connotations.
