Rene Sundown
Artist | Rene Sundown | ||
Date of Birth | 01/01/1952 | ||
Language: | Yankunytjatjara | ||
Art Centre | Iwantja Arts |
BIOGRAPHY
Rene was born in the bush land that surrounds Mt Ebenezer, to parents Mindy and Andy. Rene and her two older brothers Jimmy and Kingsley, were raised in the bush by her mother while her father worked as a stockman between Mt Ebenezer Station and Erldunda Station, which are both located along the Lasseter Hwy towards Uluru.
Rene began painting at Iwantja Arts in the year 2000, painting memories of the long walks she would take along the tali (sand hills) and the salty river water near Erldunda Station that she played in as a child. Her paintings use a simple colour palette and gain complexity through her confident brush marks and intriguing iconography. Emerging from a ubiquitous composition, Rene’s paintings evoke images of desert grasses, hidden pathways and sun-cracked riverbeds.
Rene works at the Iwantja Art Centre daily, and sees a strong link in the cultural exchanges available between painting canvases and engaging the broader community in understanding more about Indigenous cultures, the shared turbulent history of white settlement on the APY Lands, and the unequivocal positive future for collaboration and shared knowledge.