Lucky Morton Kngwarreye

Artist: Lucky Morton Kngwarreye

Skin Name: Kngwarreye (also spelled Kngwarrey, Ngwarai)
Language Group: Alyawarr
Country: Ngkwarlerlanem and Arnkawenyerr
Area: Utopia Region, Central Australia
Born: 1950

Lucky Morton Kngwarreye began her artistic career in 1977 and has featured in numerous group exhibitions since then. The oldest daughter of renowned Utopian artist Mary Morton Kemarre, Lucky participated in batik workshops in Utopia from 1977 to 1987, alongside her mother and younger siblings. Her work is part of the Holmes à Court Collection, which has been exhibited extensively in Australia and abroad. In the summer of 1988-1989, Lucky transitioned to painting as part of CAAMA's "The First Works on Canvas, a Summer Project."

Growing up, Lucky attended a bush school near Hatcher’s Creek, northeast of Utopia, and spent her childhood around Kurrajong Camp in Utopia and MacDonnell Downs Station. She comes from a family of artists, including her sisters Sarah Morton Kngwarreye, Hazel Morton Kngwarreye, Ruby Morton Kngwarreye, and Audrey Morton Kngwarreye.

Lucky paints a wide variety of stories from her two countries, Ngkwarlerlanem and Arnkawenyerr. These stories include Alhepalh and Ilyarnayt. Her subjects also encompass Ilyarnayt (Acacia Flower), Country, Awelye (Women's Ceremony), Alpite (Wild Flowers), Tharrkarr (Sweet Honey Grevillea), Rainbow Dreaming, Camp Scene, and Yerrampe (Honey Ant) Dreaming.

Lucky has attended Bachelor College in Alice Springs, which has taken her to Darwin and Tennant Creek for further education. Her artworks have been showcased in Sydney and Melbourne exhibitions, and she has also worked briefly with wood sculpture.

Collections:

• Mbantua Gallery Collection, Alice Springs, NT
• Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, NSW
• National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, ACT
• The Holmes à Court Collection, Perth, WA
• Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, QLD

Exhibitions:

• 1989: Utopia Women's Paintings, the First Works on Canvas, A Summer Project, 1988-1989, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, NSW
• 1990: Utopia - A Picture Story, an Exhibition of 88 works on Silk by Utopian artists, Holmes à Court Collection, toured Eire and Scotland
• 1990: Balance 1990 - Views - Visions - Influences, QAG, Brisbane, QLD
• 1991: The Eighth National Aboriginal Art Award Exhibition, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, NT
• 1991: Australian Perspecta, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW
• 1998: Dreamings, Spazio Pitti Arte, Florence, Italy
• 1998: Exhibition in Art Centre Meerzigt, Zoetermeer, The Netherlands
• 1998: Art Gallery Culture Store, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
• 2002-2005: Regional Galleries Association of Queensland tour, QLD
• 2002-2004: Mbantua Gallery USA exhibitions
• 2003-2004: National Museum of Australia, Canberra, ACT
• 2004: Last of the 20th Century, Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, NT
• 2004-2006: Evolution of Utopia, Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, NT
• 2005: Small Wonders, Mbantua Gallery, Alice Springs, NT
• 2014: Narrativa Herióca - Pintura Aborígine do Deserto Australiano, Renaissance Hotel, São Paulo, Brazil

Awards:

• 2010: Finalist, 27th Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA), Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, NT

References:

• Brody, A. (1990) Utopia: a Picture Story, 88 Silk Batiks from the Robert Holmes à Court Collection, Heytesbury Holdings, Perth, WA
• Latz, P. (1995) Bushfires and Bushtucker, IAD Press, Alice Springs