Johnny Bulun Bulun

Johnny Bulun Bulun(1946–2010) was a highly respected healer, ceremonial singer, and one of the most significant Arnhem Land painters of his generation. Born beside the Arafura Swamp in Central Arnhem Land, he belonged to the Gurrambakurramba clan and held major ceremonial responsibilities, participating in birth ( Marradjiri ), initiation ( Djapi ), and mortuary ( Murrkundjeh ) ceremonies.

He learned painting and ceremonial knowledge from his father Ngarritj, his uncle Peter Bandjurldjurl, and the renowned bark painter George Milpurrurru. His homeland was Ngaliyindi, later living and working in Maningrida, where he painted through Bawanaŋga Art Centre.

Bulun Bulun’s work is distinguished by its refined balance, symmetry, and meticulous rarrk (cross-hatching), closely tied to ceremonial narratives. During the 1970s and 1980s he collaborated with his adoptive nephew Lin Onus and was among the first Yolŋu artists to experiment with printmaking and lithography. His work achieved wide international recognition.

In 1989, Bulun Bulun became central to a landmark Indigenous intellectual property case ( Bulun Bulun v R & T Textiles , 1998), establishing important legal protections for Aboriginal artists. In 1993, he led Yolŋu performers to Makassar, Indonesia, re-enacting ancestral Macassan connections, and his work featured in major exhibitions including Aratjara – Art of the First Australians.

He won the Bark Painting Award at the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards in 2001 and received the Red Ochre Award for lifetime achievement in 2004.