179-24UA, Acrylic on Linen, 99 x 117cm, Umoona Arts
Myra Kumantjara is an emerging artist based in Umoona community in Coober Pedy. Myra was born in 1981, her mother's country is Sundown Wells and father's country is Mimili. Myra began painting with Umoona Art Centre in mid-2021. She has demonstrated a deep talent and confidence through her bold paintings, and alongside her individual works, she has also collaborated with her mother Jeannie Minunga and Aunty Kay Finn on large-scale paintings. Myra paints her grandmother’s country Kalpi, near Mimili on the APY Lands. Kalpi is an important women’s place and full of rockholes.
Umoona Art Centre was established in 2020 with the aim of building capacity for sustainable employment pathways through artmaking. Community members have been campaigning for an art centre for 15 years and have commenced work with a passion and focus. Since its inception, Umoona artists have been painting at home and in community buildings, however, they are determined to have an operational art studio by the end of 2022. Umoona community is diverse, with artists from different language groups across the central desert working alongside those who have always called Umoona and Coober Pedy home. Artists embrace a variety of mediums including paint on linen, punu work and carving and tjanpi (fibre weaving), with works demonstrating a vibrant use of colour and energetic mark-making.
