Helen Rubuntja b. 1965

Helen Rubuntja was born on Amaroo Station, 350km north-east of Mparntwe (Alice Springs). Her mother is Nelly Rubuntja Apetyarr, another artist from Ampilatwatja. Helen is the niece of renowned painter and a key figure in the land rights movement, Wenton Rubuntja.

Helen's paintings depict her grandmother’s country – the brilliant azure desert sky, the eastern MacDonnell Ranges and the abundance of vegetation and wildflowers that grow after the desert rains. The wildflowers are colourful and delicate and may only bloom for a short time. The taller trees with hanging green foliage are desert oaks that pepper the landscape all year round.

Helen’s style is a fusion of a Western way of seeing the landscape but layered with the dots that have become synonymous with Aboriginal art. They provide a small window, capture a moment in time, back into Helen’s grandmother’s country.