Artifact Puunya Aboriginal Tribe Umpila Australia XX

Puunya bag by Aboriginal artist and weaver Dorothy Short of the Umpila tribe of Lockhart River in Cape York, Queensland, Australia. Crocheted from Lomandra longifolia grass with natural dyes. 20th century.
Born in 1933, Dorothy Short was one of the "Old Girls," the elders of the Aboriginal community of Lockhart River. Excerpt from an article from Artlink Australia on the women weavers and painters: "Now the grandmothers have begun to paint, with great success. The Old Girls (as they describe themselves) have shown works in Italy, France, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The exhibition also included baskets, which are one of the key elements in understanding how a group of untrained artists could suddenly begin producing these complex and subtle paintings. Weaving and body painting have a strong presence as traditional arts in Lockhart River, and many women have been weaving for 60 years. They use natural dyes to produce elaborate striped patterns and color relationships that are often reflected in their paintings."