barayuwa-munungurr
Homeland: Waṉḏawuy
Clan: Djapu
Moiety: Dhuwa
Barayuwa is a long time staff member of Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka, providing great assistance to all the artists of the community in many ways. Partly through touching up other artists’ works, Barayuwa has developed a very fine hand and has now become an established artist in his own right, painting both his own Djapu clan designs as well as his mother’s Munyuku clan designs. His mother is recently deceased Beŋgitj Ŋurruwutthun, a sister to the great Dula, who was a renowned ceremonial expert and painter.
In 2007, Barayuwa was in his first exhibition at Raft Artspace in Darwin. Early season barks in 2008 – painted with Munyuku clan design – showed a strength and style quite reminiscent of his late uncle and Barayuwa became an obvious candidate for Annandales Young Guns II. The success of his involvement in this exercise led to his participation in a Brisbane group show in 2008 and his solo show at Indigenart in Perth in early 2009. Also during 2009 he was invited to participate in a collaborative project with Sydney based artist Ruark Lewis – Transcriptions for the Perfect House – a multi media installation at the ANU Gallery in Canberra scheduled for 2011.
He had his first solo show at Indigenart in Perth and followed that up with involvement in the 30 x 30 show of 2011. He continued to exhibit and collaborate with Ruark Lewis in 2012 and 2013, spending three weeks in an extended studio visit leading up to their joint show with Jonathan Jones at Macquarie University. Also in 2013 his bark in the 30th anniversary Telstra NATSIAA was highly commended and acquired by the Museum and Art Gallery of the NT. A further work was commissioned by the NGA.
In 2014 he was invited to exhibit in Primavera at MCA curated by Mikala Dwyer. This was a major feature of the exhibition and included a bark shelter with video screens.
In 2015 he was the major hit of the Darwin festival where there were four exhibitions featuring his work. Notably, his solo show at Outstation Gallery sold out and his collaborative exhibition at Northern Centre for Contemporary Art with non-Indigenous artist Ruark Lewis was hugely successful. His installation was purchased by MCAA as a wall drawing.
He was a star in the Monaco Oceanographic Institute exhibition which he attended in 2016 where he met Prince Rainier. As well as exhibiting bark, he also clothed a nine metre fibreglass whale in the patterns of his mothers clan.
In 2017 his wall work Yarrinya was purchased by the MCA and exhibited
Barayuwa is also a skilled maker of yiḏaki, gaḻpu (spear-throwers), gara (spears) and biḻma (clap-sticks).
