DEAF TOMMY MUNGATOPI

Painted at Milikapiti, Melville Island
Robert Steele Gallery, Adelaide
Acquired by the current owner from the above 14.5.90

Housed in aluminium braces. No restoration or repairs. White pigment around central motif has suffered many areas of pigment loss, though now appears stable.
"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."

Cf. For similar contemporaneous paintings by the artist in the collection of the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, see Moon, Morning and Evening Stars, in Barnes, K., Kiripapurajuwi (Skills of Our Hands): Good Craftsman and Tiwi Art, Kathy Barnes, Darwin, 1999, illus. p.43; and Sun Shining on a Coral Reef, c.1970, in Crumlin, R. and A. Knight, Aboriginal Art and Spirituality, Dove Publications, Melbourne, 1995, illus. p.23, plate 4; the latter work also in Holmes, S. Le Brun, The Goddess and the Moon Man: The Sacred Art of the Tiwi Aborigines, Craftsman House, Sydney, 1995, illus. p.118 under the title, Full Moon Reflected in the Sea in the Country of Purakapali.

The image in the painting, as with the Northern Territory Museum paintings and contemporaneous paintings of the same subject by the artist in the collection of the National Gallery of Australia, is an evocative interpretation of light reflecting off the coral reefs on the eastern side of Melville Island where the ancestral drama of the coming of death amongst the Tiwi was played out. Here Purukuparli the apical male ancestor carried his dead infant son out to sea and drowned.The coral reefs are also the domain of Tiwi women as they collect shellfish found on the reefs at low tide (see Caruana,W., Aboriginal Art,World of Art Series,Thames and Hudson, London and New York, 2003, p.93) The artist is represented in most major public collections in Australia, including those mentioned above and the Art Gallery of Western Australia, Art Gallery of South Australia, the National Museum of Australia and the Australian Museum.