Aboriginal Art (World of Art)
“Aboriginal Art is a significant resource for anyone interested in Indigenous Australian culture, art history, or anthropology.”
Aboriginal Art is a deeply informative survey of Indigenous Australian art, offering readers an intimate look into the cultural and spiritual worlds of the peoples of the Arnhem Land region. Richly illustrated and packed with full color images, this book goes beyond aesthetic appreciation to illuminate the social structures and ancestral narratives that underpin the region's visual traditions.
Central to the subject matter is the concept of the Dreaming—the foundational cosmology in which ancestral beings shaped the land, created life, and established the laws and customs followed to this day. Rather than treating the Dreaming as myth or history, the book demonstrates how it is a living, continuous force, manifested in ceremonial practice and, crucially, in art. As Caruana explains, “The Dreaming provides the ideological framework by which human society retains a harmonious equilibrium with the universe.” The Dreaming is not merely depicted; it is reactivated each time a bark painting is made or a pattern engraved.
The author takes great care in explaining how symbolic meaning in Arnhem Land art is not open for reinterpretation but is tightly bound to patrilineal inheritance. Knowledge of particular stories, designs, and motifs is passed down through the father’s line and is considered sacred and restricted. As such, the artworks are not only aesthetic creations but also declarations of identity, custodianship, and ancestral rights to land and ceremony. This makes the art deeply personal and politically resonant, especially in the context of land rights and cultural survival.
Of primary importance to the symbolic and spiritual nature of Aboriginal art is the debate over making the images available to the public. Artists and elders have considered how much imagery should be kept private versus open to outsiders, or those not initiated into the Dreaming lineages. Artwork carries with it layers upon layers of meaning and connection however, exposure to the pieces does not change their deeper purposes; people will see what see or what they have been taught to see and nothing more. With this understanding, Aboriginal art began its long journey toward commercialization and modernization with art schools and galleries popping up throughout the region.
The book incorporates analysis of materials and techniques, and reviews some of the more prominent artists’ approaches to design and composition. Arnhem Land artists traditionally use natural ochres on eucalyptus bark, with colors derived from iron-rich earths—reds, yellows, and whites—combined with charcoal blacks. Contemporary artists use canvas and acrylic paint, though there is controversy over whether these newer technologies are considered “Aboriginal.”
The use of rarrk (cross-hatching) is a hallmark of the region's art, serving not merely as decoration but as a form of coded communication decipherable only by the initiated. These patterns often signify elements of water, spirit beings, or the skin names associated with particular clans. They also portray a geographical map of sorts, indicating territorial lines of popular myths, significant battles, or impressive spiritual events. Contemporary artists are experimenting with using the traditional rarrk markings to tell new stories.
Subject matter is varied but always deeply rooted in place and story. Key ancestral beings such as the Rainbow Serpent (Ngalyod), the Mimih spirits (said to have taught the art of painting to the aboriginal ancestors), and the Djang'kawu Sisters (who, according to the stories, gave birth to the clans and created spiritual sites) appear frequently, anchoring the paintings to sacred sites and ceremonial knowledge. The interplay of the figurative and the abstract is another highlight, as seen in works where geometric precision is used to express metaphysical ideas and spiritual presence.
For example, in a 1981 piece titled Ceremonial ground by artist Antjari Tjampitjinpa, absent any recognizable human figures, concentric circles composed entirely of dots and dashes at an aerial view indicate a structure for highly esoteric concepts representing figures in an initiation ceremony. “The larger sets of circles represent the body designs of the older men who are painting the bodies of the young initiates, shown as the smaller circles. The background stipple represents the cleared ceremonial ground, while around the perimeter of the painting the dots indicate a body of water surrounding the camp. . . . the minimal use of iconography [implies] a wealth of concepts far deeper that the interpretation given to the uninitiated.” What the general population sees is a tight gathering of over 200 cell-like circles bumping into each other, reverberating one against another. What is seen is only the beginning of what is being conveyed.
Aboriginal Art is a significant resource for anyone interested in Indigenous Australian culture, art history, or anthropology. It situates Arnhem Land art not as a static tradition, but as an evolving, dynamic practice that continues to assert cultural continuity and spiritual sovereignty. Most importantly, it allows the voices of the artists to remind readers that each artwork is not merely something to be viewed but ultimately something to be respected.