MICHELLE PULATUWAYU WOODY MINNAPINNI

Michelle Pulatuwayu Woody Minnapinni is a Tiwi artist from Milikapiti, a small community situated on Melville Island, located off the northern coast of Australia’s Northern Territory. Rooted in the long-standing practices of her ancestors, her work expresses important Tiwi creation stories and representations of Murrakupupuni (Country) using jilamara/designs. She sources natural pigments from sacred locations on Murrakupupuni, which she then grinds and hand mixes. While typically used in Tiwi body painting for ceremony, Woody uses the pwoja (ironwood comb) to create contemporary representations of her homeland in striking bands of white, yellow, and red. In addition to her painting practice, she also works in the weaving and making of Tiwi ceremonial ornaments like the marriwiyi/ceremonial pandanus skirt.