Anniebell Marrngamarrnga

Anniebell Marrngamarrnga is an Aboriginal Australian artist from Maningrida in the Northern Territory of Australia. She is well known for her large-scale, intricate fibre sculptures.

Biography Anniebell Marrngamarrnga was born in Maningrida on December 31, 1967. She is part of the Kuninjku language group of the Darnkolo clan of the Yirridjdja moiety.

She learned to weave from her mother, Nancy Djulumba, who died in 1995. She started out making coiled baskets, twined bags, and string bags. She later learned to paint from her husband, Dick Nadjolorro.

Fibre sculpture among Kuninjku women was largely pioneered in the early 2000s by Marina Murdilnga, daughter of bark painter Mick Kubarrku. After learning weaving from her mother, she invented a new form of flat fibre sculptures made with a knotting technique. Murdilnga’s work was well-received and it inspired other Kuninjku women to pursue similar work.

Anniebell Marrngamarrnga began experimenting with fibre sculptures in the early 2000s. Her favorite subject is the yawkyawk, a female spirit who lives in the water. The Yawkyawk spirit lives in freshwater streams and pools in Western Arnhem Land. They are depicted as part-woman and part-fish, with long hair and a fishlike tail. They are often compared to the European idea of a mermaid.

The yawkyawk spirit in Marrngamarrnga’s work is one that lives in a waterhold at Kubumi, near the Mann River. This Dreaming belongs to her husband.

She begins by building a bamboo frame in the shape of the yawkyawk. She then weaves the fibre into the shape of the figure. The fibre usually used in weaving is pandanus (Pandanus spiralis). Women are generally responsible for the labor-intensive task of collecting and preparing the fibres. After the monsoon season, new leaf growth is harvested from the top of the pandanus tree. Various plants, berries, and barks are collected and prepared to be used as dyes. The pandanus strips are soaked in containers of warm dye for several hours if not days, and then hung out to dry in the sun. This entire process takes several days and requires patience and skill.

Anniebell Marrngamarrnga now lives and works in Maningrida with her husband, Dick Nadjolorro. She continues to create fibre sculptures of the yawkyawk and is known as an accomplished artist, both in the community, nationally, and internationally.

Career Anniebell Marrngamarrnga’s work has brought fibre sculpture to a new level. Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, Australia The Toga Group Collection, Australia Aimee Proost Private Collection, Queensland, Australia Axel Arnott Collection Charles Darwin University Art Collection, Darwin, Australia