Bark Painting | Back to the Top
The pieces on display in this website highlight the regional and cultural variation which underpins the great variety characteristic of bark painting produced by artists in Maningrida and at its surrounding outstations. For an introduction to this work with comments about the various stylistic differences, refer to ‘Bark painting in Maningrida’, a short essay prepared by Dr. Luke Taylor.

All bark paintings are painted in natural ochres with PVC fixative on stringybark. Prices for bark paintings are assessed on the quality and size of the bark and the reputation of the artist.

Works in fibre from the Maningrida region are recognised nationally and internationally as some of the country’s finest. Objects range from baskets and bags through to fishing traps and mats, which are produced not only for markets in the wider economy but also for seasonal hunting and gathering and for highly specialised ceremonial purposes.

The vibrancy of this work is due in part to the interaction of Aboriginal people of different language groups serviced by the Maningrida township. Production is also enhanced by the availability of resources from different environments existing in the region.

Most fibre objects are made by women, who constitute nearly 60% of the 300 artists registered with Maningrida Arts & Culture. Their works are held in major collections and institutions and are exhibited regularly in Australia and overseas.

Fibre and Dye

The weavers of north central Arnhem Land use their intimate knowledge of plants to source a wide range of dyes for fibre. The same dye bath is often used to dye a number of batches of fibre, with variations in the colours yielded in each batch depending on the time spent in the dye bath and the potency of the bath. The women use salt and woodash as mordants and colour enhancers.

Orange, yellow and red can all be produced from the root of t a certain plant. The root is prepared by peeling off its outer skin and cutting it into small pieces. Pieces of root are boiled in a billy can of saltwater with the raw fibre. After one hour of cooking the first batch of fibre comes out deep orange colour. After removing the first batch, a second batch of raw fibre is placed in the billycan and stirred around for a few minutes. This turns a bright golden yellow colour. Then Eucalyptus wood ash is added to the billy and a the third bundle of raw fibre is placed into the billycan, and stirred around. This yields a rich pink-red colour.

Mats and Baby Shades

People in north central Arnhem Land weave many different kinds of mats for a variety of purposes. Conical mats were traditionally used to shield babies from mosquitoes. Small triangular mat made of pandanus fibre used to be worn by women during ceremonial gatherings, covering them at the front and tied around their back.

Coil Baskets

The technique of coil and stitch basketry was introduced to Arnhem Land by missionaries who learnt it from Aboriginal people in the south-east of Australia.
Coil baskets are mostly made from pandanus fibre which is dyed with natural colours.

The basic stitching technique is a close blanket stitch, but often weavers use variations for decorative effects. The coil building technique is also used with other fibres, such as Kurrajong bark and string.

Dilly Bags

Most dillybags made in the region today are those made of fibre from the leaves of the pandanus plant. They have a characteristic domed shape and can be twined so that they are open and let air enter the bag, or more closely so that the bag is leakproof. There are many kinds of pandanus dillybags, including the basic hunting variety and ceremonial dillybags. Other dillybags are made from a tough fibrous grass or monsoon vine.

String Bags

String bags are made from two ply string which is rolled from fibre gleaned from the bark of various trees. They are made by looping the string in a regular pattern so that it forms a flexible netlike weave. There is a basic looping technique used for string bags, but sometimes a weaver will modify it by adding an extra twist in the loop.

Often a weaver will add feathers to string as she rolls the fibre which results in decorative feathered bags. The fibre is dyed with natural dyes from the bush.

Hollow logs are painted in natural ochres with PVC fixative on Kurrajong or Stringybark.

Since then, during the 1990s, a number of women from the region have begun to work in the areas of etching, lithography and screenprinting, in response to a series of projects run by the arts and women's centres in Maningrida. Since 1997, the staff from Northern Editions at NTU have been instrumental in both the production and promotion of prints by artists from this region. The Maningrida Women's Centre has now acquired its own printing press, much of the production now takes place entirely in Maningrida.