Join us for a virtual artist talk with Matilda Nona discussing the themes and processes behind her exhibition, 'Tirra lumaik', as well as the shifts from more traditional lino printing techniques into the world of natural pigments, sand painting and creating with Country. 

About the exhibition: 

'Tirra lumaik' is the movement of the north westerly Kuki wind that blows from November to March each year on Badu Island. This wind will continue to build in search of its direction—from the North, South, East and West. When Kuki finds its path, it will blow cyclonic winds and storms.

Much like the swell of this searching wind, Tirra lumaik traces a significant intersection of Matilda Nona’s practice, as she builds upon her central lino carving practices and traditional methods of printmaking, to experiment with natural pigments and sand-painting practices endemic to Badu. Through the utilisation of cultural symbolism, totems and personal motifs, such as shells, native fauna and the Koedal (crocodile), Matilda recounts and expands upon First Nations storytelling to provide new and innovative perspectives on Torres Strait Islander culture.

Tirra lumaik is Matilda’s first solo exhibition and charts both her personal, artistic and spiritual journey as she comes into her own.

About the artist:

Matilda Malujewel Nona is an Argan artist from Badu Island whose practice seeks to record and preserve cultural traditions and ancestral stories from the Torres Strait Islands. Through crafted piment and natural ink dye processes, Matilda's printmaking and experimental painting practice is inextricably woven with the spiritual and natural landscapes in her surrounding environment. Matilda is currently a co-director of the Badu Arts Centre. Her work is also in several private and institutional collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art and the National Gallery of Victoria.