I love the designs and the geometry of Australian aboriginal painting.
Before Indigenous Australian art was
ever put onto canvas the Aboriginal people would smooth over the soil to
draw sacred designs which belonged to that particular ceremony.
Body
paint was also applied which held meanings connected to sacred
rituals. These designs were outlined with circles and encircled with
dots.
Uninitiated
people never got to see these sacred designs since the soil would be
smoothed over again and painted bodies would be washed. This was not
possible with paintings. Aboriginal artists abstracted their paintings to disguise the sacred designs so the real meanings could not be understood by outsiders.
Dot painting originated 40 years ago
back in 1971. Geoffrey Bardon was assigned as an art teacher for the
children of the Aboriginal people in Papunya, near Alice Springs. He
noticed whilst the Aboriginal men were telling stories they would draw
symbols in the sand. Bardon
encouraged his students to paint a mural based on traditional dreamings
on the school walls. The murals sparked incredible interest in the
community. He incited them to paint the stories onto canvas and board.
Soon many of the men began painting as well.
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