Kay Baker b. c.1950

Kay Baker was born in the early 1950s near the remote community of Pukatja (Ernabella) in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in South Australia. Her father was the famous Pitjantjatjara artist Jimmy Baker, whose early career was as a “baker” of bread, then he became a stockman, tending to sheep. He moved to Ernabella Mission in the early 1930s, and Kay grew up here until she was 12, before moving back to her mother’s country near Mimili.

In the early 2000s, Kay was the major instigator in the establishment of the Tjunku Palya Arts Centre at Kaltjiti (Fregon). Kay went to the Lutheran Yirara College in Mparntwe (Alice Springs) before moving back to Kaltjiti in SA, where she worked at the Kaltjiti Art Centre and learned arts and craft practices, primarily batik, from her grandmother. Kay was also integral to the establishment of the small community of Kanpi in the APY Lands.

Kay is the mother of widely exhibited artists Teresa and Kani (Patricia) Tunkin Baker, and grandmother to emerging artist Clarise Tunkin. Kay now spends her time between her community in South Australia and Mparntwe  in the Northern Territory. Kay is a confident and creative artist, painting the stories of Malilu (a significant ancestral woman from Kanpi) and the Emu (Kalaya) Dreaming. 

Kay paints with considerable seniority and cultural authority. Her style of painting is varied and dynamic, and she is highly sought-after for her textured dotting style and mastery of bright, vibrant colour palettes.