EXPANDED LABEL: 2022.217 GANAMBARR
By Katina Davidson
May 2023
In early December 2020, Gunybi Ganambarr and Yinimala Gumana set off with family members to go turtle hunting. They drove a few hours down the bush track from their homeland at Gäṉgän to Garrapara (Grindall Bay) and from there launched a boat to the reefs around Woodah Isle. Their engine broke down while hunting near Woodah, so they paddled to shore for the night. In the morning they calmly fashioned a sail from what was available to make their way home, stitching together the boat canopy and their work shirts with copper wire to make a Macassan-style sail, supported by a frame of wooden turtle harpoons. When tide and wind were favourable they set sail for home, but were intercepted by a police boat, which had launched from Gapuwiyak following reports that the men had been missing overnight. To memorialise the event, Gunybi completed this etched work inspired by a mobile phone image snapped by a surprised police officer during the ‘rescue’.
Connected objects
Djirrit 2021
- GANAMBARR, Gunybi - Creator