Alison Munti Riley b. 1966

Alison Munti Riley was born near the community of Pukatja, formerly Ernabella, in the expansive Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands of Central Australia. Alison went to Adelaide for several years as a young girl, but primarily grew up at Pukatja, and moved to Amata with her family around 1990. Alison’s mother is Betty Munti, who taught her to paint whilst working at Ernabella Arts in 1989. Her mother taught her the art of batik and screen printing fabric. Alison trained as a teacher but says, "[her] arm kept reaching for the paint brush", so became a fulltime artist instead. Alison is a vibrant person and her artworks reflect her colourful and jovial personality. Alison also diligently teaches painting and story to her daughters, emerging artists Anthea and Amelia Riley. 

Alison often paints the ancient Dreaming stories of the journeys of women crossing her ancestral homeland, mapping the features of the land and sacred sites from a topographic point of view. Her seniority as an artist is evident in her skill and in the number of stories she paints; Kungkakarangkalpa Tjukurpa (Seven Sisters Dreaming), Kungka Kutjara (Two Women), Hilly Country, Ili (wild fig), Irmangka Irmangka (bush medicine), Wangunu (bush damper seed), Kaliny-Kalinypa (honey grevillea) and a Mamu (Devil spirit) story. Alison loves to sit and tell jokes and talk about stories, old and new, and her skill for storytelling is evident in her paintings.

Alison is an acclaimed Pitjantjatjara artist with a bold and confident style of painting that is drawn from her seniority and experience – her artworks have been exhibited worldwide and appear in numerous publications. Alison won the People’s Choice Award in the 28th NATSIAA (National Telstra Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award) for her Seven Sisters painting.