Mawukura Explained

Mawukura, also known as Jimmy Nerrimah (1924–2013), was an Australian Aboriginal artist.

Life and career

Mawukura was a Walmadjari man. His country is around Wayampajarti, a permanent waterhole in the north-western area of the Great Sandy Desert in Western Australia.^[1]

His works have been sold to overseas collectors and are represented in the National Gallery of Australia^{[2] [3]} and many other collections.

Buck–Milgin case

Nerrimah was in a relationship with Julie Buck – more than 40 years his junior – prior to her disappearance from Looma in 1993; her body was found the following year. Buck was also romantically involved with Richard Milgin, who disappeared around the same time. In 2016, a cold case homicide investigation by Western Australia Police named Nerrimah as one of three suspects in the two disappearances, along with his close friend John Watson and Watson's son Anthony.^[4] In 2023, Buck's best friend Lisa Skinner gave evidence before a coronial inquest that Nerrimah had beaten Buck on multiple occasions.^[5]

Exhibitions

Solo shows

• 1999 Artplace, Perth
• 1994 Artplace, Perth
• 1994 Reflections of the Kimberley Gallery, Derby, WA
• 1993 Gallery Gabrielle Pizzi, Melbourne
• 2001 Artplace, Perth
• 2003 Cooee Gallery Sydney
• 2003 Artplace, Perth
• 2004 45 Downstairs Gallery, Melbourne
• 2005 Artplace, Perth
• 2005 Raft Artspace, Darwin

Group shows

• 1999 Selected to hang in 16th National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards, Darwin, Northern Territory
• 1999 Aboriginal Kunst aus West Australien, Galerie Gaswerk, Germany
• 1999 Cooee Gallery Sydney with Peter Skipper
• 1994 ACAF-4, Fourth Australian Contemporary Art Fair, Melbourne
• 1994 Eight Western Australian Artists, The Blaxland Gallery, Sydney
• 1994 City of Gosnells Art Award, Art Prize
• 2001 Ngurrara Canvas National Gallery of Australia
• 2001 Framed Gallery, Darwin
• 2001 Cooee Gallery Sydney with Peter Skipper
• 2016 Billabong Dreams, Seattle Art Museum^[6]

Collections

• Levy Kaplan Collection, Seattle, USA
• Thomas Vroom Collection, Amsterdam
• National Gallery of Australia
• Art Gallery of Western Australia
• Gallery Gabrielle Pizzi
• Ian & Sue Bernadt Collections
• Wesfarmers Ltd

Further reading

• 1994 Road O'Brien Playful Air to Dottiness of Bushcapes The West Australian, 19 May 1994
• 1995 Anna King Murdoch Late Starter Tells Desert Story in Bright Acrylics The Age 3 December 1995
• 1998 Jila Painted Waters of the Great Sandy Desert Video documentary / SBS Television

Notes and References

1. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20080929153400/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/45035/20080930-0134/www.mangkaja.com/artists/artist9c8a.html Mangkaja: MAWUKURA JIMMY NERRIMAH profile
2. Web site: Crack shot on canvas . 18 November 2003 . . https://web.archive.org/web/20160604102308/https://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/11/17/1069027174321.html . 4 June 2016 . live .
3. Web site: Mulgra (Mawukura) Jimmy Nerrimah . National Gallery of Australia . 25 August 2020.
4. News: Artist Jimmy was promised a young bride. She was in love, but not with him. Sydney Morning Herald. 19 July 2018. Richard. Baker. 3 August 2023.
5. News: Richard Milgin inquest: Julie Buck’s ‘promised’ husband beat her with stick before disappearance, court heard. The West Australian. 2 August 2023. 3 August 2023.
6. News: Billabong Dreams. February 18, 2017. Seattle Art Museum.