“It is not unreasonable to suggest that Emily Kame Kngwarreye was one of the twentieth century’s most important abstract painters.” – Akira Tatehate (Director National Museum of Art, Osaka, Japan)

Internationally acclaimed for her mesmerising paintings, Emily Kame Kngwarreye (1910-1996) is arguably Australia’s most celebrated contemporary artist. Her reputation as the most sought-after First Nations artists is reflected in her strong market, with a $2 million auction record and a recent exhibition at Gagosian in Paris – the world’s largest commercial gallery. The Tate Modern in London acquired three of her paintings in 2019, which are currently on view as part of the exhibition ‘A Year in Australia: 1992’, and her work was included in the Venice Biennale in 2015. Other notable collections that hold her work include the NGA in Canberra, AGNSW in Sydney, NGV in Melbourne, AGSA in Adelaide, AGWA in Perth and QAGOMA in Brisbane. The present work is a beautiful example of her series of flower paintings, in which she uses a wide brush to create flower-like patterns. Other examples from the series are found in important institutional collections, including the Art Gallery of New South Wales.