Indigenous art carries the vast history of Australia. If you are an art enthusiast, keep this souvenir in your house to increase its aesthetic. Indigenous art is unique to Australians because it is a treasured cultural legacy. Each aboriginal artwork depicts a unique story. This story is specific to a particular tribe. Even more, an artist is only permitted to draw about their tribe and not other groups. This makes a specific work of aboriginal art even more distinctive. You would be thrilled to know about indigenous art and how purchasing it would escalate the beauty of your place.
Art Made by Aboriginals
The first glimpse your mind can conjure of this art form is probably a series of paintings, sculptures, and representations of nature. This art form involves depictions created by Indigenous Australians or the people originally belonging to Australia. The art form goes back thousands of years, and many consider the indigenous people to have been residing in the continent for over 50,000 years. This indigenous community is often considered the oldest community in the whole world. Isn’t that interesting?
This art entices humans to behold a picturesque landscape since most paintings are based on natural landscapes like deserts, valleys, grasslands, seas, etc. Not just landscapes but Australian animals also have a prominent presence in art and folklore. Furthermore, these artworks also convey a strong meaning through the use of ochre or soft rock containing clay.
Ochre holds great significance in this art form. It was one of the original pigments people used to produce art. The method of formation includes grinding till it becomes a fine powder and following it up by mixing it with water. It became famous as the medium of painting this celebrated art form. Apart from ochre, they made use of powdered charcoal and mashed clay.
Ochre still hasn’t lost its fame, and the indigenous people still use it to devise paintings. Not just for paintings, but ochre is also used to paint bodies and faces. It further has medical uses and was bartered. These indigenous Australian people have practised body painting for more than 30,000 years.
The activities of these people, including paintings, were known as The Dreaming. The Dreaming is the weaving of stories and spiritual beliefs by the Aboriginal people. The ancient Australian art forms mainly involved symbols, patterns, and shapes drawn with natural colours. Dots and swirls were staples. Symbols held the utmost significance in this culture since no written language existed.
Symbols of This Art Form
Symbolism was indispensable in the aboriginal art form, and each colour and character denoted something. Some of the colours are listed with their meanings:
- White represents the spirit
- Black is the colour of the night and is used to depict the aboriginals
- Red is used to describe blood or the land
- Yellow is used to depict the sun or the sacred source
The Australian bush or outback is a sultry landscape where the soil and stones are red. This red colour results from the presence of iron oxide in the soil.
Patterns and Dots in Aboriginal Art
Most art forms are designed with numerous patterns and dots to fill the space. Therefore, you cannot locate any space in these paintings. These paintings are representational rather than realistic. The use of dots in the Aboriginal culture is quite famous, and the art of body painting has highlighted that.
Bringing home aboriginal art will never be a loss. It will instantly amp up the look of your home. And who doesn’t want that?
