Gawaymbanha (Welcome)
Artist Statement
Karen Lee Mungarrja*
Wiradjuri, Tubba-Gah
My paintings are abstract representations of landscape which rely on Aboriginal symbols and other motifs as visual signifiers, to explore concepts of memory.
Using contemporary representations of Aboriginal iconography such as the songlines (the ‘dreaming’ track which maps landscape) as visual and emotional cues, my work aims to evoke in the viewer a response to the notion of memory.
I endeavour to create artworks that are aesthetically and therefore visually beautiful, but work which also offers multiple layers of meaning.
I am naturally drawn to the concept of storytelling and narrative, which in turn, acts as a vehicle for meaning, enabling me to explore ideas and notions from the ‘past’ and their embedded remnants within the landscape.
I am also aware that through the use of contemporary representations of Aboriginal symbols in my work I am embarking on a journey of discovery, one which helps me to navigate my connection to culture, and to understand the repercussions of dispossession for many traditional owners of the land.
*Mungarrja means “mountain”
Biography
Living and working on Darug country in Penrith, New South Wales, Karen Lee (Mungarrja)is a Wiradjuri (peoples of the three rivers) artist of the Tubba-Gah clan, Dubbo NSW. In Aboriginal culture, traditional names are given by elders. 'Mungarrja' meaning ‘mountain’, was given to Karen by her Uncle Michael Gararroongoo Huddleston, a Roper River elder.
As a mature-aged student undertaking her Bachelor of Arts (Curtin University), Karen was exposed to many styles, concepts and thematic interests, and it was during this formative time that she began to focus on the concept of ‘memory’, which has since developed into the underlying theme of her practice: exploring the connection between landscape and memory and more specifically, the remnants and traces left in environments either in a physical form or as emotion.
Aboriginal people have walked this country for thousands of years, leaving tracks which are both tangible and spiritual. Karen wishes to challenge the idea of ' past' as something no longer existing; rather, she believes it is something which “remains in our memory and within the land” and is manifested in what we see and what we cannot see.
Karen’s work has been collected by private, corporate, government and institutional collections, both nationally and internationally.
Karen has also been the recipient of numerous artwork commissions, most recently for Life Apparel, products, a collaboration with Cadbury ‘Roses’ chocolates, and a suite of integrated artworks for specific sites located within the Northland Shopping Centre.
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