Gladys Kemarre Biography and CV
View Gladys Kemarre's paintings
Gladys Kemarre (1937-2017), (or Glady as she was known), an Anmatyerre woman, was born on Mount Swan Station, north east of Alice Springs.
Gladys started painting on silk and cotton in the batik technique in 1977, along with Angeline Ngale (Kngale) and Emily Kngwarreye. After ten years of producing beautiful batik in glorious colours, with the training and encouragement of Jenny Green and Julia Murray, Gladys, along with other Utopia women took part in an exhibition at the S. H. Ervin Gallery in April 1989 on small canvas boards. This was organised by Rodney Gooch of the Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association (CAAMA). Gladys also took part in the foundational exhibition 'A Summer Project: Utopia Women's Painting (first works on canvas) 1988-89', then participated in a watercolour survey in early 1989 which was acquired in its entirety by the Holmes a Court Collection.
Gladys and her sister Ollie were inseparable, often sitting together painting the Anwekety (conkerberry) or Bush Plum Dreaming with Angeline Ngale (Kngale), which had been passed down to her by her grandmother. The fine dot work of Gladys' paintings depicts the ripening stages of this important food staple. The plant produces white flowers and berries, which when ripe, are edible and sweet to taste. The berries also feed a variety of wildlife including the emu, bush turkey and other native bird species. Gladys' artworks simultaneously provide a topographical view of the landscape around Ahalpere, her Country in the Utopia region in Central Australia. As part of Gladys’ Dreaming, the women perform awelye ceremonies (women's ceremonies), paying homage to the bush plum to ensure further germinations in years to come.
Over the years Gladys has participated in multiple exhibitions around Australia and overseas including India, Germany, Korea and across Europe. Her paintings are held in prestigious collections around Australia.
Gladys lived at Camel Camp Outstation in the Utopia region, where she resided with her close relatives including her sister, Ollie Kemarre, and fellow Utopian artists, the Kngale sisters - Kathleen, Polly and Angeline. The practice of painting was a very sociable one for these women and they were often seen painting and chatting together.
Sadly, Gladys passed away in 2017.
COLLECTIONS
Aboriginal Art Museum, The Netherlands
The National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
The National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
The Holt Collection, Delmore Gallery, NT, Australia
Artbank
Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
Flinders University Collection, Adelaide, South Australia
The Holmes à Court Collection, Perth
Kerry Stokes Collection, Perth
Maitland Regional Gallery, Maitland, NSW
Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin
Redland City Art Gallery, Cleveland, Queensland
EXHIBITIONS
2017 The Golden Age of Utopia, Aboriginal Signature Estrangin gallery, Brussels, Belgium2017 Utopia: the artists of Delmore Downs, Yaama Ganu Gallery, Moree
2015 Aboriginal Artists, Wimbledon Fine Art, London
2015 Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Award, Museum and Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, NT
2014 Landscape of our Dreaming, Red Poles, Mclaren Vale, South Australia
2014 Senior Women from Camel Camp, Utopia, London
2013 Brush with Art Festival, Prairie Hotel, Parachilna, South Australia
2013 Arthur Guy Memorial Painting Prize, Bendigo Art Gallery, VIC
2013 Sunshine Coast Art Prize, Caloundra Regional Art Gallery, Caloundra, QLD
2013 Hazelhurst Art Award, Gymea, NSW
2013 Togart Contemporary Art Exhibition, Parliament House, Darwin, NT
2012 Calleen Art Award, Cowra Regional Art Gallery, NSW
2012 Albany Centennial Art Prize, Vancouver Arts Centre, Albany, WA
2012 Highlights, Redland Art Gallery, Cleveland, QLD
2012 Albany Art Prize, Vancouver Arts Centre, Albany, WA
2012 Belongings, Australasian Arts Projects, Singapore
2011 Cossack Art Award, Post and Telegraph Building, Karratha, WA
2011 Hazelhurst Art Award, Gymea, NSW
2011 The Waterhouse Natural History Prize, The South Australian Museum, SA
2011 Albany Art Prize, Vancouver Arts Centre, Albany, WA
2011 Arthur Guy Memorial Painting Prize, Bendigo Art Gallery, VIC
2011 The Fleurieu Landscape Art Award, Fleurieu Peninsula Biennale, McLaren Vale, SA
2011 City of Whyalla Art Prize, Middleback Theatre, Whyalla, SA
2011 Utopian Aboriginal Art, Without Pier Art Gallery, Melbourne
2011 Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards, Museum and Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, NT
2010 Utopia, Indigenart - Mossenson Galleries, Subiaco, WA
2010 The Redland Art Awards, Redland Art Gallery, Cleveland, QLD
2010 Cossack Art Award, Post and Telegraph Building, Karratha, WA
2010 John Leslie Art Prize, Gippsland Art Gallery Sale, VIC
2010 Melbourne Art Fair 2010, Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton, VIC
2010 The Waterhouse Natural History Prize, The South Australian Museum, SA
2009 Aboriginal art in Korea, Gong Pyeong Art Space, Seoul, Korea
2008 From the Desert to the Sea, Yurlunggar Art, Brisbane
2008 Emily and Her Legacy, Hillside Gallery, Tokyo with Coo-ee Art Sydney in conjunction with the opening of the landmark retrospective exhibition Utopia – The Genius of Emily Kngwarreye at the National Art Centre, Tokyo, Japan
2007 Patterns of Power, Art from the Eastern Desert, Simmer on the Bay, Sydney
2006 Senior Women of Utopia, GalleryG, Brisbane
2004 Aboriginal Art Exhibition, Gallery Bahrt, Speyer
2002 Aboriginal Art Exhibition, Gallery Bahrt, Speyer
2002 Land of Diversity, The Northern Territory, Hogarth Galleries, Paddington
2001 Land of Diversity, The Northern Territory, Hogarth Galleries, Paddington
2001 Exposition Collective, Arts d’Australie, Arts D’Australie Equation Transparence, Paris
1998 Utopia and Balgo Hills, Gallery Bahr, Speyer, Holland
1997 Exposition Collective, Arts d’Australie, Arts D’Australie Equation Transparence, Bruxelles
1996 Voices of the Earth, Paintings, Photography and Sculpture from Aboriginal Australia, Seoul, South Korea, Calcutta.
1996 Nangara: The Australian Aboriginal Art Exhibition from the Ebes Collection, Brugge, Belgium
1996 Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Art Centre, Alice Springs, N.T
1994 Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Art Centre, Alice Springs, N.T
1993 Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Art Centre, Alice Springs, N.T
1992 Central Australian Aboriginal Art and Craft Exhibition, Araluen Art Centre, Alice Springs, N.T
1992 Emily Kngwarreye and Utopia Artists, Hogarth Gallery, Sydney
1992 Utopia Women, Eastern Desert Art (Robin Purvis) Brisbane
1991 Utopia Artists, Hogarth Gallery, Sydney
1991 Alraluen Centre for the Arts, Alice Springs
1990 Art of the Eastern Desert, Eastern Desert Art, (Robin Purvis) Brisbane
1989 Aboriginal Art from Utopia, Gabrielle Pizzi, Melbourne
1989 Utopia Women, Coventry Gallery, Sydney
1989 Utopia – a Picture Story, Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute, Adelaide; The Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin; The Crawford Municipal Art Gallery, Cork; Limerick City Gallery of Art, Limerick; Meat Market Gallery, Melbourne
EXHIBITION OF BATIK SILKS
1988 Time Before Time, Austral Gallery, St Louis, USA
1988 Painting and Batik from the Desert, Utopia Art, Sydney, NSW
1988 Utopia Batik, Craft Council Gallery, Canberra, ACT
1988 Utopia Batik, Queensland Museum, Brisbane, QLD
1987 Fremantle Arts Centre, Fremantle, WA
1987 Darwin Museum Gallery, Darwin, NT
1987 Yirrkala Community Centre, Northern Territory
1987 Jogyakarta Fine Art Academy, Indonesia
1987 Sydney Expo, Craft Council Gallery, Sydney, NSW
1987 The Araluen Centre, Alice Springs, NT
1986 Craft Council Gallery, Canberra, ACT
1986 Bundaberg Art Gallery, Queensland
1986 The Araluen Centre, Springs Craft Festival, Alice Springs, NT
1985 Black Women in Focus, Adelaide Festival, Adelaide, SA
1985 Burnie Gallery, Tasmania
1985 Tasmanian Craft Gallery, Hobart, TAS
1984 Craft Council Gallery, Canberra, ACT
1984 Queensland University Gallery, Brisbane, QLD
1984 Fireworks Gallery, Adelaide, SA
1984 Sydney Craft Expo, Sydney, NSW
1984 Darwin Craft Council Gallery, Darwin, NT
1984 The Araluen Centre, Alice Springs, NT
1983 Adelaide Festival Centre, Adelaide, SA
1983 Alice Springs Craft Council, Alice Springs, NT
1982 Sydney Craft Expo, Sydney, NSW
1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games Exhibition, Brisbane, QLD
1981 Floating Forests of Silks - Utopia Batik from the Desert, Adelaide Festival Centre, SA
1980 Artworks, Alice Springs, NT
AWARDS
2015 Finalist NATSIAA Awards
2013 Finalist (H/C) Waterhouse Natural History Prize SA Museum
2013 Winner Calleen Art Award
2012 2nd Place Redland Art Awards
2012 Finalist Togart Prize
2010 Finalist City of Albany Art Prize
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Birnberg, M. & Kreczmanski, J.B. (2004) Aboriginal Artists Dictionary of Biographies: Central Desert, Western Desert & Kimberley Region. J.B. Publishing Australia, Marleston, SA.
