Gulumbu explained that some stars (gan’yu) are special for Yolngu. This theme refers to but does not specify two ‘dreamtime’ stories, which each represent different constellations, that the artist was told by her father as child. Her father was Mungurrawuy Yunupingu. The authors ‘little brothers’ are Galarrwuy and Mandawuy Yunupingu. She retells the stories for children of the new generation. She also paints them. Since a screen of sixty odd small star-based bark paintings were shown in the World Expo in Hanover Germany in 2000 she has developed this motif. It is very unlike other North East Arnhem land art which is almost always based on fine cross-hatched sacred design. Even decorative works usually employ lines rather than dots. What is also unusual about this work vis a vis other works of the region and also Gulumbu’s own star works is the absence of any figurative imagery. This adds an abstract quality to the piece but also means that it doesn’t differentiate between the stories she normally uses this design as a backdrop for. For that reason in this documentation we record both stories. Ganyu is the Yolnu word for stars. The first story is about two sisters called Guthayguthay and Nhayay. Guthayguthay is the elder sister and sits at the biggest fire, she and Nhayay who is the younger sister and has a smaller fire. The elder sister is able to carry bigger fire wood than the younger sister who can only carry small fire wood. In the olden days these two sisters used to be people, but they turned into stars that sit in the sky under the Milky Way. When the seasons here are hot the two sisters are arguing and sitting apart from each other with different fires. These arguments are often over a man called Marrngu. When the seasons are cooler the two sisters are seen together sitting by one big fire. They are surrounded by more stars when they are sitting together. When you look in the sky long enough you will see two women figures sitting near two bright stars, which are their fires burning. The second story is about seven sisters who went out in their canoe called Djulpan. During certain seasons they go hunting for food and always come back with different types of food. They come back with turtle, fish , freshwater snakes and also bush foods like yams and berries. They can be seen in the sky of a night , seven stars that come out together. The stars come in season when the food and berries come out, the stars will travel through the sky during that month until the season is over and they don’t come out until the next season. Gulumbu’s father told her about these seven sisters in a canoe, and the three brothers who came behind them, following them. They travel west. There are special stars in the sky which Yolngu call wishing stars. They give Yolngu bush tucker, they multiply the foods in the sea – that’s why Yolngu are happy to see them. That’s what Gulumbu’s father told her. When she looks at the stars, Gulumbu thinks about the universe, all around, and about every tribe, every colour. In every corner of the world people can look up and see the stars. This is Gulumbu’s vision – in her art, she focuses on the link between all people everywhere. The link between people on earth and stars in the sky – it’s real. Gulumbu links this idea to the garma, where people from everywhere can come and relax, look up and see stars. The stars are spirits of Yolngu who exist within specific bodies of water in North East Arnhem land when they are not in corporeal form. They exist in the astral dimension as well as ethereally within the water on an earthly plane. Gulumbu stressed that “We look UP to the stars, trees grow UP, people sit or stand UP, the poles stand UP”. What do we grow up to? (looking up)...the stars!” The life force (growth) inevitably matures into eternity (death) as a natural stage of growth (not as seen in a Western view its opposite or antithesis). She also says that the larger stars she represents are those visible to our naked eye but the dots are those that we cannot see which are there as well. This is what a being with an infinite view would see in the night sky-nothing but stars.

-- Buku-Larrnggay Mulka Centre Yirrkala NT 0880 Australia (08)89871701 ph. (08)89872701

**New Addresses** www.yirrkala.com art@yirrkala.com

Gulumbu Yunupingu