Wallaby with Mount Sonder, c. 1945

watercolour on paper

34 x 27.5 cm ; 51.5 x 45 cm frame

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Provenance: Purchased from the artist by Raymond John Noble, Deputy Director Armed Forces, Alice Springs c.1945 Adrian and Anne Newstead Collection, NSW
Artwork story: Walter Ebatarinja was among the first generation of Arrernte watercolour painters trained under Rex Battarbee at Hermannsburg. His landscapes reflect a moment of great artistic adaptation: traditional knowledge rendered in Western perspective. In Wallaby with Mount Sonder, Walter includes both the iconic silhouette of the mountain and a native animal, drawing the viewer's attention to Country as not just scenery but ecosystem. The composition is serene, the palette soft, yet there is a distinct sense of embeddedness - of painting as lived observation. Walter Ebatarinja's works are increasingly recognised for their role in shaping Australian art history. This piece, with its quiet dignity, is an evocative document of cross-cultural exchange.

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1915 – 1968

watercolour on paper

34 x 27.5 cm ; 51.5 x 45 cm frame

Sold

Provenance: Purchased from the artist by Raymond John Noble, Deputy Director Armed Forces, Alice Springs c.1945 Adrian and Anne Newstead Collection, NSW
Artwork story: Walter Ebatarinja was among the first generation of Arrernte watercolour painters trained under Rex Battarbee at Hermannsburg. His landscapes reflect a moment of great artistic adaptation: traditional knowledge rendered in Western perspective. In Wallaby with Mount Sonder, Walter includes both the iconic silhouette of the mountain and a native animal, drawing the viewer's attention to Country as not just scenery but ecosystem. The composition is serene, the palette soft, yet there is a distinct sense of embeddedness - of painting as lived observation. Walter Ebatarinja's works are increasingly recognised for their role in shaping Australian art history. This piece, with its quiet dignity, is an evocative document of cross-cultural exchange.