Important Aboriginal Art

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Lot 120
  • 120

GEORGE MUNG MUNG

Estimate
25,000 - 35,000 AUD
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Description

  • George Mung Mung
  • LANKERRJI - DEATH ADDER SNAKE c.1987
  • Inscribed, not in the artist's hand, on the surface of the painting: 'Lankerrji', 'Death Adder Snake'
    Bears catalogue numbers no.56 and A122 on stretcher on the reverse
  • Natural earth pigments and natural binders on canvas
  • 90 by 230 cm

Provenance

Painted at Warmun (Turkey Creek)
Lord MacAlpine of West Green
Sotheby's, Tribal Art, Melbourne, 29 July 1990, lot 176
Private collection, Melbourne

Condition

Painting and pigment appears to be in good and stable condition. There appears to be some pigment loss to the foliage on the lower trees and water marks are apparent on the bottom right hand sections of the painting probably created at the time of production.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

Cf. For another painting intended for the community at Warmun, see Ord River Country, 1990, in Crumlin, R. and A. Knight, Aboriginal Art and Spirituality, Dove Publications, Melbourne, 1995, pp.36-7, plate 14

A great cultural leader and singer of the Gija people, Mung Mung would carve and paint using any available material. He, along with and Jack Britten (c.1924-2002), was one of the first artists to paint regularly at Warmun since the establishment of the bough shed school in 1979. This work maybe one of a number that had been kept at the school in Warmun as a teaching aid for Gija children (see also Rover Thomas, 'Numanary Rainbow Snake', lot 122). Mung Mung's paintings of the east Kimberley landscape are complex compositions incorporating naturalistic and symbolic imagery. In this early painting,most probably intended for the education of children, Mung Mung has adopted a more direct approach, depicting the landscape in plan view, where the rhythm created by the meander of the snake's body is echoed in the row of hills on the horizon