Dorothy Djukulul

Dorothy Djukulul (born 1942) is a traditional Australian Aboriginal artist who lives in Ramingining in Central Arnhem Land. She speaks Ganalbingu and is a part of the Gurrumba Gurrumba clan, who identify as being a part of the Yirrija moiety.

Biography Dorothy Djukulul was born on 10 June 1942 at Murrwangi, near the Arafura Swamp in Arnhem Land. During her childhood, Djukulul and her family lived on Milingimbi Island, where she attended a Methodist school. Early in her career, Djukulul worked in a bakery in the newly established trading post in Maningrida, an Aboriginal community. After finishing school Djukulul and her family moved back to Ramingining. She has made several pieces with her second husband, bark painter Djardie Ashley (born 1950), including at the Aboriginal Artist Gallery in Melbourne in 1984 and 1986.

Djukulul was including in the project called Twelve Canoes which was based on the film Ten Canoes (2003). This project strives to highlight key aspects of Yolngu culture in Ramingining. Several works by Djukulul were included in this project.

Djukulul paints many designs that are deemed taboo for women to work with in her culture. Within her caveat on the use of these designs and spiritual stories, Djukulul has developed her own unique style that distinguishes her among men and women painters alike, admired by both Balanda and Yolngu. the Art Gallery of New South Wales, the National Gallery of Victoria and the Museum of Cultural History, the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College and the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia.

Among the several artists who created "The Aboriginal Memorial" installation (late 1980s),

Significant exhibitions

1984: Dorothy Djukulul and Djardie Ashley. Aboriginal Artist Gallery in Melbourne. 1986: Dorothy Djukulul and Djardie Ashley. Aboriginal Artist Gallery in Melbourne. 1988: Five Dupan (Hollow Logs). The Aboriginal Memorial. 1988: Dorothy Djukulul and Djardie Ashley. Esplanade Gallery in Darwin 1990: Dorothy Djukulul and Djardie Ashley. Cooee Gallery in Paddington. 2018: Tim, Tom E., Harry, Rusty, Tiger & Pussycat: Recent Works on Paper with Basil Hall. Nancy Sever Gallery.