McLean (Pantjiti), Mary,

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Title

McLean (Pantjiti), Mary,

Author

Australian Art Print Network.

Source

[Not applicable]

Publication date

2001

Type

Biography

Language

English

Country of context

Australia

Full text

Pantjit Mary McLean

Pantjit Mary McLean is a respected elder of the Ngaatjatjarra people of the Western Desert. Now living in Kalgoorlie, she has experienced a life of huge variety. As a young woman and mother she came into contact with whitefella life at Warburton and then further west as a musterer on the sheep stations in the eastern goldfields of Western Australia. However, her early life within the tradition of her culture gave and continues to sustain a prodigious knowledge of the Tjukurrpa or Dreaming.

Pantjiti commenced drawing and painting in 1992 in a figurative manner and has since that time steadily established her position as a visual artist in Australia. She has won awards both for her art and her work with young people encouraging them through her commitment to a healthy lifestyle. She has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters by Curtin University for her contribution to the arts in Western Australia.

Visually distinct because of the manner in which people, animals, birds and the topography of the land are portrayed, her work is instantly recognisable as being quirky and individual. Pantjiti Mary McLean enjoys immensely drawing and painting her stories and memories.

Biography courtesy of The Australian Art Print Network, 2001.
© Australianprints