About
Gloria Petyarre is one of the most revered artists from the Utopia region, north-east of Alice Springs. She was one of seven sisters who are all artists, including the celebrated Kathleen Petyarre, Nancy Petyarre, Violet Petyarre and Ada Bird. The artist was raised in a remote part of the Eastern Desert and initiated into Anmatyerre law and traditions.
Like many female Aboriginal painters of her generation, Gloria Petyarre first gained recognition as an artist as a painter of batik. She first participated in the first art programs organised at Utopia in 1977 when she was 35 years of age, and began producing fibre art. These early batik-making workshops marked the emergence of Aboriginal women artists as a force in the Desert Painting movement. In 1988, Gloria made a first shift into painting on canvas, and her first work was shown in the exhibition, ‘Utopia Women’s Painting; The First Works of Canvas; a Summer Project 1988 to 1989’.
In 1999 the artist won the coveted ‘Wynne Prize for Landscape’ at the New South Wales Gallery. This was a triumph for Aboriginal art, with Gloria Petyarre becoming the first Indigenous Australian artist ever to win a major art prize at the Gallery of New South Wales. The most prestigious Indigenous art competition in this country, the ‘Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award’ has featured her artworks on many occasions, and her works are widely collected and commonly held in the finest Aboriginal Art Collections and Museums worldwide.
