"Our dad's painting is hiding, in secret place": reverberations of a rock painting episode in Kakadu National Park, Australia

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorGoldhahn, J.
dc.contributor.authorBiyalwanga, L.
dc.contributor.authorMay, S.K.
dc.contributor.authorBlawgur, J.
dc.contributor.authorTaçon, P.S.C.
dc.contributor.authorSullivan, J.
dc.contributor.authorJohnston, I.G.
dc.contributor.authorLee, J.
dc.date.issued2021
dc.description.abstractThis paper presents and discusses a 1972 rock painting episode at Koongarra in Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory, Australia. This painting, which depicts a macropod, was created by Billy Miargu when he camped at a sandstone outlier with his wife and young daughter. It was documented by two rock art scholars, George Chaloupka and Robert Edwards, but interpreted as untraditional 'casual art'. Using a community-based approach, we re-evaluate this painting episode by (i) exploring the depicted subject matter from an emic perspective, demonstrating how it refers to the origin myth of an important ceremony, and, (ii) through interviews with the descendants of the artist, we discuss and investigate how the 1972 painting episode is commemorated and understood today. Our findings are grounded in contemporary discussion within anthropology and archaeology that explores multivocal Indigenous voices in the interpretation of material culture in general, and rock art in particular.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityJoakim Goldhahn, Linda Biyalwanga, Sally K. May, Julie Blawgur, Paul S.C. Taçon, Joanne Sullivan, Iain G. Johnston and Jeffrey Lee
dc.identifier.citationRock Art Research, 2021; 38(1):59-69
dc.identifier.issn0813-0426
dc.identifier.orcidMay, S.K. [0000-0003-2805-023X]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/134666
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherArchaeological Publications; Australian Rock Art Research Association
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/FL160100123
dc.rightsCopyright Australian Rock Art Research Association Inc. May 2021
dc.source.urihttps://www.proquest.com/docview/2575908187/EC65D4994ED145B4PQ/8?accountid=8203
dc.subjectRock art; Indigenous archaeology; Kakadu National Park; Arnhem Land; Australia
dc.title"Our dad's painting is hiding, in secret place": reverberations of a rock painting episode in Kakadu National Park, Australia
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

Files

Collections

Humanities publications