Louise McMillan b. 1993

Louise McMillan is an Arrernte woman from the community of Ltyentye Apurte (Santa Teresa) in the Northern Territory, about 80km south-east of Mparntwe (Alice Springs). Her younger sister is Rosina McMillan who is also an artist, and they often sit and paint together. Louise has a fine dotting technique that she learned at Santa Teresa School as a young girl.

Louise primarily paints a Bush Medicine or bush flower design, representing the native bush medicine botanicals that grow in Louise’s country. At the right times of year, these plants are collected and used by the women to treat certain ailments. There are many ways to create bush medicine, however a common mathod is to lay the leaves in the sun to dry, then grinding them into a fine powder to be mixed with animal fats to extract the medicinal qualities. Louise also paints a sweet bush tucker treat called Sugarbag, which is the honey produced by native stingless bees. Sugarbag also has medicinal qualities, similar to manuka honey. Her repetition of stroke, dot and pattern create a sense of depth and movement upon the canvas.