Kulama

Timothy has been painting for 13 years at Jilamara, Milikapati. He likes to paint large canvases, and feels his work is very spiritual. When Timothy was a little boy he saw old people paint, people like Deaf Tommy Mungatopi. ‘Watch them painting old people’ – they taught him design. The raw natural pigments were painted as designs on people’s bodies during ceremony. Dots were applied to Timothy’s face as his jilamara for ceremony. ‘Red is favourite, white favourite, yellow good too’ – Timothy uses natural pigments without hesitation, composing his paintings with pure instinct with masses of flat coloured spaces.

He speaks personally about his paintings; his Kulama his ‘favourite/ special’ painting. Kulama is the ceremony for coming of age, the cycle of life – initiation into Tiwi kinship. Timothy holds a deep connection to culture and country; his paintings depict traditions felt through true uninhibited expression.

(Jilamara Arts & Crafts Association)