Back in Australia in 1997 I went to work as an art coordinator in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia at an Aboriginal ladies silk screen printing workshop. This was, without doubt, the most satisfying period of my life. It was also great fun. At weekends the women would take me out to their respective “country” and show me rock paintings; catch bush tucker and tell me something about their ancient creation myths. Sometimes the guys would take me fishing too. One day we caught a dugong in the boat just off Derby. It was huge and I worried that it would sink us.That night about 60 Aboriginals and me – the only white person – had a great feast of dugong cooked in a pit wrapped in pandanus leaves. After a lot of dugong, and even more grog, was consumed I watched as first the women, and then the men, danced by the light of the fire under the clearest imaginable sky. With virtually no industry for a thousand or more kilometres in any direction the sky was so clear the stars seemed to be right there, close above my head, like they’d been painted on a sheet of glass just a couple of metres above me.
With the help of my good friend Willie Repetto I listened to the dirges, dronings and cacophony of their singing for at least an hour before I could actually make anything of it all. Then I slowly realised how circular it was. Willie played the didgeridoo on such occasions; his endless circular breathing, a counterpoint and compliment to their concept of time. Their's is a circular view – not linear like mine. Our time goes in a straight line but for Willie’s people it just keeps on coming around.
Email Pete: wapenshaw@hotmail.com
Phone Pete:
Australia: 0435 600 429
Thailand: 0855 721 452
