Kulata Tjuta

Kulata Tjuta, meaning ‘many spears’, is an ongoing project of cultural maintenance, which began in the Amata community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands, located in the northwest of South Australia. Kunmanara (Gordon) Ingkatji was a well-respected senior law man who spent his life teaching people about Anangu (Aboriginal people from the western desert region) and their language, law and culture. He was deeply involved in Kulata Tjuta – passing on old knowledge and law to young Anangu men through spear making workshops. By sharing the skills of spear making across generations, the traditions of spear making as a form of cultural practice are kept alive.

The installation is made up of 550 spears and takes on the appearance of an explosion frozen in time. This references the atomic bomb testing carried out at Emu Junction and Maralinga between 1953 and 1963 and the resulting ‘black mist’, which caused illness and death for many Anangu. Often these tests took place without the permission of Aboriginal custodians of this country and had devastating effects on both the people and the environment.

Alec Baker, Eric Kumanara Barney, Freda Brady, Moses Brady, Michael Bruno, Angela Burton, Cisco Burton, Kunmanara (Hector) Burton, Noel Burton, Pepai Jangala Carroll, Taylor Wanyima Cooper, Margaret Ngilan Dodd, Sammy Dodd, Jimmy Donegan, Maureen Douglas, Kunmanara (Ronnie) Douglas, Stanley Douglas, Arnie Frank, Witjiti George, Kunmanara (Gordon) Ingkatji, Adrian Intjalki, Rupert Jack, Willy Kaika Burton, Nyurpaya Kaika Burton, Naomi Kantjuriny, Brenton Ken, Freddy Ken, Ray Ken, Iluwanti Ungkutjutu Ken, Graham Kulyuru, Willy Muntjantji Martin, Errol Morris, Kevin Morris, Mark Morris, Peter Mungkuri, Vincent Namatjira, Tiger Palpatja, Mary Katatjuku Pan, David Pearson, Jimmy Pompey, Aaron Riley, Adrian Riley, William Tjapaltjarri Sandy, Priscilla Singer, Keith Stevens, Lydon Stevens, Bernard Tjalkuri, Lyndon Tjangala, Mr Wangin, Ginger Wikilyiri, Mick Wikilyiri, Mumu Mike Williams, Anwar Young , Carol Young, Frank Young , Kamurin Young, Marcus Young, Roma Young, Yaritji Young, *Kulata Tjuta*, 2017, Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands, South Australia, wood, spinifex resin, kangaroo tendon; Courtesy the artists and Ernabella Arts, Iwantja Arts, Kaltjiti Arts, Mimili Maku Arts, Ninuku Arts, Tjala Arts, Tjungu Palya, APY Art Centre Collective, installation view: TARNANTHI: Festival of Contemporary Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art, 2017, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, photo: Saul Steed

Australian Curriculum Connections - Civics and Citizenship (Years 3-10)

Citizenship, diversity and identity

Different perspectives about Australia’s national identity, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives, and what it means to be Australian (ACHCK066)
Diversity of cultural, religious and/or social groups to which they and others in the community belong, and their importance to identity. Recognising that the identity of First Nations Australians is shapes by Country/Place, language and knowledge of traditions (AC9HS4K09)

Australian Curriculum Connections - History (Years 4 & 5)

Knowledge and Understanding

The diversity of Australia's first peoples and the long and continuous connection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to Country/Place (land, sea, waterways and skies) (ACHASSK083)
The impact of a significant development or event on an Australian colony (ACHASSK108)
The nature of convict or colonial presence, including the factors that influenced patterns of development, aspects of the daily life of the inhabitants (including Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples) and how the environment changed (ACHASSK107)

Australian Curriculum Connections - Modern History (Senior Secondary)

Movements for Change in the 20th century: Recognition and rights of Indigenous peoples

The nature of government policies and their impact on Indigenous peoples, for example protection, assimilation (including the Stolen Generations), and self-determination (ACHMH072)

Responding

Describe your first impressions of Kulata Tjuta. Now describe Kulata Tjuta in one word. Share your response with the class.
Look carefully at the spears in Kulata Tjuta. How are the spears similar, but different?
Imagine this work of art could make a sound. What would sound would it make?
The Kulata Tjuta project provides an opportunity for the passing on of old knowledge and law to young Anangu men through the teaching and learning of spear making. Why is it important to pass on knowledge from old to young? Do you have a family tradition which has been passed on from one generation to the next? Write a short story about a special tradition in your family.
Discuss the role of lighting in the Kulata Tjuta.
How have the artists created a sense of movement in this installation?
Why do you think the artists used spears to reference the atomic bomb testing that occurred on Country?
The Kulata Tjuta installation is made up of 550 spears. Find other examples in the Gallery where an artist has used multiples of the same object. How does the use of multiples convey meaning? TIP Look at some examples on the Gallery’s online collection such as Chuffing Around, 1990 by Tony Bishop, Twin-Subjecter, 2011 by Thomas Hirschhorn, Burial Ground, 2012 by Yhonnie Scarce or Someone died trying to have a life like mine, 2014 by Alex Seton.
In 2015, Yhonnie Scarce created Thunder Raining Poison, an installation of 2,000 blown glass yams suspended from the Gallery ceiling. Thunder Raining Poison responded to atomic bomb testing that occurred in Maralinga by the British and Australian governments between 1953 and 1963. Discuss how Thunder Raining Poison and the Kulata Tjuta communicate differently the effects of atomic bomb testing.

Investigate

Investigate the atomic bomb testing that occurred in South Australia between 1953 and 1963. List the specific consequences this testing had on the environment and the people.
Find out more information about the art of spear making. How are spears made and what are they made from? What other tools or resources are needed to make a spear? Locate other examples of traditional Aboriginal objects such as tools, baskets or shields on display in the Gallery.
Find other examples where a group of artists have collaborated to create a work of art. Why do you think artist collaborations are so important?

Making

Light and shadow are important features in Kulata Tjuta. Make a sculpture using pop sticks, skewers or pencils and plasticine. Shine a light onto your sculpture to create interesting shadows. Draw around these shadows onto a piece of paper. Experiment by changing the position of your sculpture and the direction the light is coming from. Record your shadows again, this time overlapping your first observations. Continue this process until you have a composition you are happy with.
Collect multiple versions of the same object, for example, paper cups, cutlery, stationary, bread tags, bottle tops or leaves. Experiment with placement, repetition, contrast and symmetry to create a work of art.
Create a work of art that responds to a significant event in Australia’s history. Experiment with using multiples, light and shadow to communicate your story.
Kulata Tjuta takes on the appearance of an explosion frozen in time. Create a work of art that captures an action frozen in time. Imagine what a scream or a sneeze would look like if it were something tangible and static.
Record your impression of Kulata Tjuta with drawing or photography. Back at school, join your drawings and photographs together to create a large collaborative work.
Sometimes the shadows that a work of art casts can be as interesting as the work of art itself. Create a sculpture from recycled materials where the shadows become an important part of your work. TIP Look at the The Gamekeeper’s Gibbet, 2011 by Tim Noble and Sue Webster in the Gallery’s collection online.