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QUEENIE MCKENZIE NAKARRA 1915 - 1998 Red Butt - Texas Station, 1997 ochre on paper 64.5 x 103 cm; 76 x 114 cm (framed) bears inscription verso: Red Butt - Texa's Station 25km NE of Warmun; Across the river from Old Texas This is willy-willy country 'spiral drawing' You see the dust come up everyday. PROVENANCE Narrangunny Art Traders, NT Coo-ee Art, NSW Cat No. 6325 later 8421 Private collection, NSW accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Coo-ee Art EXHIBITED Written in the Land - The Life of Queenie McKenzie, Coo-ee Art, 14 March - 18 April 2009 This ochre on paper work by Queenie McKenzie depicts Red Butt, the country where she was born and raised. The site lies across the river from Old Texas Station, about 25 kilometres north-east of Warmun. Locally it is known as "willy-willy country," named for the spiralling dust storms that move across the landscape. McKenzie has filled the sheet with pink ochre, framed by a yellow ochre border, punctuated by spiralling forms that represent the willy-willys. Among Gija people, these dust whirls are regarded as messengers from the spirit world, carrying signs or warnings across Country. As the first woman to begin painting in the Warmun community after the early prominence of Rover Thomas and Paddy Jaminji, Queenie McKenzie played a crucial role in establishing Gija women's painting within the contemporary art movement. Her paintings often depict the country of her upbringing and its stories, affirming both her own lived experience and the wider cultural narratives of the Gija people. @ QUEENIE MCKENZIE NAKARRA / Copyright Agency, 2025