By Geoffrey Williams, Founder and Publishing Curator, The Indigenous Art Book
In our previous post, we answered Michelle’s question about how to begin a collection of Australian Aboriginal Art when you have no idea where to start or what to include. As we discussed, while narrowing the field of choice by selecting pieces that share their geographic origins with where you live is an ideal way to begin building your collection, there are also other insights relating to the origins of the work you might like to consider.
How a particular piece ‘speaks’ to you
I’ve marvelled at this experience, so I am sure many of you have as well – that moment when you see a piece of art that simply captivates you. It might not be obvious, at first or if ever, why this is the case, but when it happens, it is an extraordinary experience. You can’t take your eyes off it, and even as you explore other galleries, you keep coming back to this particular piece. If you fall in love with a piece, my advice is always to buy it before somebody else does – because they will. Aboriginal Art, in particular, is more than just décor. Deeply embedded throughout the Movement, is sacred storytelling and communication. Once you find out more about the story that informs the piece, why you love it so much may begin to make sense, or it may not. It is important not to be too literal in your analysis of why a particular piece captivates you in the way that it does. It probably just belongs on your wall for all the right reasons that may very well remain a mystery to savour every time you look at it.
A synergy with your career or passion
One of the grand themes that can be found throughout the Australian Aboriginal Art Movement is health and wellbeing – from the women’s celebrated bush medicine leaves ceremony to the joys of gathering nutritional food from throughout the desert and sharing laughter, company, and stories while meals are prepared. Art can, and often does, most certainly reflect your career and/or your passion, because something about the piece relates directly to the journey you have chosen to pursue throughout your own life. Maybe you are obsessed with birdlife, or animals … or the epic constellations that magically and magnificently decorate our great southern skies? Again, it is important not to be too literal, but recognise the synergy between the art and your personal and/or professional journey through life makes the piece the ideal travelling companion.
Seven Sisters Dreaming by Gabriella Possum Nungarrayi. Painted in 2017. Acrylic on canvas. 250cm x 183cm. Image courtesy of The Bedford Collection and The Indigenous Art Book. ©2025. All rights reserved. Reproduction is strictly forbidden in all national and international jurisdictions.
Memories of travel and Country
I have often heard people say that they want a piece to remind them of their travels – whether they be through Arnhem Land, the Central and Western Desert regions, or the Top End. People who are leaving Australia to either live or return to somewhere else in the world have also often wanted a piece to remind them of their experiences of Australia. Sure, they may well have hundreds of photographs, but a piece of art from the continent’s oldest surviving creative movement is undoubtedly the best way to hold and cherish their memories of their time here. These choices become slightly less complicated, because they speak to the unforgettable views from an aeroplane window of the wondrous landscape … the unbelievable detail and colour palette that somehow, having rarely flown in aeroplanes, the artists have captured in often astonishing synergy and detail.
Tingari Cycle by Willy Tjungurrayi. Painted in 2009. Acrylic on canvas. 215cm x 142cm. Image courtesy of The Bedford Collection and The Indigenous Art Book. ©2025. All rights reserved. Reproduction is strictly forbidden in all national and international jurisdictions.
The element of surprise
I will never forget the first time I learned that mermaids were an essential and sacred feature of Aboriginal culture and story. It was one of those moments in my life where I can honestly say I was astonished. These fascinating origin stories that nest throughout the Indigenous culture of our continent often serve to illuminate how little we know, as non-Indigenous people, about the ancestral origins that created and continue to define Country, culture, and consequences of our actions. Pieces that highlight particular aspects of the culture that you learned something about for the first time in your life are precious pieces in any collection of Australian Aboriginal Art.
Do you have a question you would like us to answer? We would love to hear from you at theindigenousartbook@gmail.com
Geoffrey Williams is the Founder and Publishing Curator of The Indigenous Art Book. He is based in Darwin, Australia. The Traditional Owners of Darwin and the surrounding region are the Larrakia (Saltwater) people. Larrakia country runs far beyond the municipal boundaries of Darwin, covering the area from the Cox Peninsula in the west to the Adelaide River in the east.
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