Turkey Tolson 'Straightening of Spears' 1992 woodblock print
One of these fabulous colour woodblock prints on .Magnani Pescia white paper 'Straightening of Spears' (from the Untitled Series) 1992, by Turkey Tolson Tjupurrula is in the collection of the Queensland Art Gallery. This edition: 1/20. Paper size 53x38cm, image size 45x30cm
The parallel dotted lines reference both the straightening of mulga spears over fire and the striking rock formations of the Ilyingaungau site (source: Vivien Johnson)
Turkey Tolson Tjupurrula (b. 1942 - 2001) was among the youngest artists of the founding generation of the Papunya Tula movement, beginning to paint in 1973 after observing senior artists such as Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri, George Tjangala and Ray Inkamala Tjampitjinpa. Born near Ikuntji (Haasts Bluff) following his family’s migration from the Gibson Desert, he grew up immersed in bush life, later living between Papunya, Kungkayurnti and, from 1985, Walungurru (Kintore). There he established the outstation Yuwalki, close to his ancestral country and the Kungka Kutjarra (Two Ancestral Women) Dreaming that recurs throughout his work.
Tolson’s practice evolved through several stylistic phases. Early paintings adhered to Pintupi conventions, but by the late 1970s he was producing large-scale canvases distinguished by refined concentric forms and extraordinary technical control. The 1980s marked a period of experimentation, combining subtle tonal modulation with increasingly bold iconography.
A decisive shift occurred in 1990 with Straightening the Spears at Ilyingaungau , now in the Art Gallery of South Australia and exhibited in Aratjara: Art of the First Australians (1993–94). This work initiated a series of highly influential minimal linear paintings that, according to art historian Vivien Johnson, became a prototype for later Pintupi men’s painting. The parallel dotted lines reference both the straightening of mulga spears over fire and the striking rock formations of the Ilyingaungau site, expressing what Johnson described as the artist’s “austere intellect.”
Chairperson of Papunya Tula Artists from 1985 to 1995, Tolson was also a respected cultural broker, remembered for his quiet authority and deep connection to country.