Kunwinjku Aboriginal Rock Art

Kunwinjku Aboriginal rock art is one of the oldest forms of artwork in the world.

Thousands of years ago the Kunwinjku ancestors painted Aboriginal animal art onto the rocks of Western Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. They used paints made from natural ochres, which were made by crushing rocks of different colours into powder. The ochre powders were mixed with water to make a paste of the right consistency. Then the artists would scrape resin from the trunks of trees to mix into their paints as a fixative. Paint brushes were made by paring down grass stems, or sometimes from the artist's own hair.

The artworks created by these ancestral Aborigines are the first Aboriginal x-ray art.

Today, visitors can go on guided tours to view approved sites of these ancient indigenous paintings. The rock paintings are priceless relics of a people who were the original inhabitants of this country.
You are invited to visit the Northern Territory of Australia to see the source of today's Kunwinjku Aboriginal art.

Right now, on this website, you have the wonderful opportunity of viewing artwork by Leslie Nawirridj, a descendant of Australia's first artists. Leslie's images are a timeless reflection of his ancestors' painting tradition. Today they are available as quality prints on canvas, which can be purchased directly from the on-line galleries on this website. Or invest in original paintings on cotton paper, which can be ordered by contacting Leslie on the on-line contact form provided.

This photo shows an ancient artwork located on Injalak hill at Gunbalanya (Oenpelli), in Western Arnhem Land. The turtle was painted thousands of years ago by Leslie's Kunwinjku ancestors. This is an example of the first Aboriginal x-ray art.

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