Secret Aboriginal cave paintings come to London
What: Mamaa : The Untouchable Ones,  an exhibition of Ngarinyin cave rock art
Where: Australian High Commission, Australia House Strand London WC2B
When: 20 June – 23 June, 27- 30 june 10am – 5pm
Official launch and smoking ceremony Tues 19 June
Who Ngarinyin artists Pansy Nulgit and Matthew Martin, with curator Heather Winter

The exhibition comprises 40 works by 30 painters, from eighteen to 80 years old and has toured internationally since 2004. For the first time in London [??] it charts the development of the ancient Gwion and Wanjina art previously kept secret in caves in the North West Kimberley region of Western Australia.
The origins of the exhibition lie in a 1997 visit to the Cro-Magnon Lascaux caves, in the south of France, by Ngarinyin elders Paddy Neowarra and David Mowaljarlai. As living custodians of ancient caves in their own country, they were using their own rock art to explain to French audiences the meaning of “wungud”, which means “where we come from''.
Ngarinyin Chairman Paddy Neowarra said when he entered the Lascaux Caves that it was like
“….going into the belly of the snake, it was their Wungud country…their beliefs…. I could see the ancestor’s way of life and belief from these paintings……but it made me feel sad….they did not have the story really of these caves…no old people left to know the story.”
Unlike Lascaux, the Ngarinyin caves are directly linked to the living clan estates of the Ngarinyin people. “We know the meaning of it and we are passing this down to the younger people. The Wanjina is our God, before in old times nobody showed anyone- sometimes not even their own people they showed the painting. It’s our birthright story.”
“The visit was timely', explains curator and creative director Heather Winter. 'On their return to Australia Neowarra and David Mowaljarlai began the Ngarinyin Cave to Canvas movement to train the younger people to interpret their caves through the guidance of the elders putting their stories onto canvas. This would help to preserve their culture for future generations.'' The recent receipt of the Australian Altruism Foundation Humanitarian Award for the best Arts, Media and Entertainment recognised the significance of the innovative Wanjina and Gwion “Cave to Canvas” movement in influencing Australian Aboriginal art.
Ngarinyin visionaries and artists, Pansy Nulgit and nephew Matthew Martin, have been selected by their community to officially launch Mamaa The Untouchable Ones on June 19th at the Australian High Commission in London. Together they will perform by ‘smoking’ audiences – known as the bedgugan ceremony – and singing in language, as they welcome audiences to view the exhibition; a protocol observed on entering the Wanjina cave sites in their homelands.
“Our paintings are a performance of renewing the spirit - the land, the law and the canvas cannot be separated.” explains senior Ngarinyin Artist Pansy Nulgit
Working with the creative director, Heather Winter, the community have developed appropriate cultural contexts (which are not commercially driven) to manage the copyright of the Wanjina and Gwion stories. It was discussed amongst the elders as to whether they should proceed with translating their sacred sites, transferring the cave art onto canvas because in the past it was considered ‘untouchable’ -- they had no right to show it to anyone unauthorized. “The Aboriginal word is Dambun, which means where each clan comes from there is a cave there which tells of Ngarinyin law. That cave is “Mamaa” which means you can’t touch it!” - Pansy Nulgit
“The works aim to give a new dimension to understanding the diversity of Aboriginal culture and art in Australia as the paintings show the web of relationships between families and the many hundreds of caves in Ngarinyin land wherein the families of each artist is related and owner of copyright to a single cave site. It’s like the notion of inheriting real estate (for us) however this is over thousands of generations”, Ms Winter said.
The group plan to visit the British heritage site of Stonehenge during their stay.