Paddy Fordham Wainburranga, Untitled (Two Figures), Undated

Natural earth pigments on Arches paper
55 x 75 cm (visible), 66.5 x 86 x 4.5 cm (framed)
Condition: Very good

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Paddy Fordham Wainburranga (Australian, 1932-2006) was a Rembarrnga man born in Bamdibu (also spelled Bandibu) near Bulman Station. He grew up in a traditional lifestyle, learning Dreamtime stories and costumes from his father and uncles. In his youth he worked as a stockman across multiple cattle stations in the Top End before settling at Maningrida in the 1960s and later at Beswick Station (also known as Jarruluk), where he began painting in the early 1980s.

Wainburranga became celebrated for his expressive bark paintings, spirit-figure carvings and lithographic prints and narrative works that combine Rembarrnga mythologies with Aboriginal perspectives on colonial history. He was a key contributor to the Aboriginal Memorial (creating multiple painted hollow-log coffins) and received major recognition in Australia’s leading Indigenous art awards. He won Best Artwork in Open Media in 1989 and First Prize in 1993.

(Photographed in July 2025)