"My Country" by Rayleen Price Pula

"My Country" by Rayleen Price PulaSize: 93 x 90 cm Born: 1969. Utopia Northern Territory Language: Awmatjere Dreaming's: Bush Medicine, Bush Leaves, Bush Tucker, Womens Ceremony Rayleen Pula Price is an emerging artist from the famous artist community of Utopia in Central Desert, Australia. Utopia is approximately 350km northeast of Alice Springs. Rayleen is a direct relative of the internationally renowned Anna Price Pitjara, and, similarly, paints a detailed depiction of her Country

Size: 93 x 90 cm

Born: 1969. Utopia Northern Territory

Language: Awmatjere

Dreaming's: Bush Medicine, Bush Leaves, Bush Tucker, Women’s Ceremony

Rayleen Pula Price is an emerging artist from the famous artist community of Utopia in Central Desert, Australia. Utopia is approximately 350km northeast of Alice Springs. Rayleen is a direct relative of the internationally renowned Anna Price Pitjara, and, similarly, paints a detailed depiction of her Country like that of Anna. 

 In addition, Rayleen vibrantly illustrates bold depictions of her Dreaming 'bush leaves' and ‘bush seeds', which are fundamental to the staple foods and medicine utilized by Utopian women. Rayleen's colorful and intricate depictions make her works appealing. 

Her mother Margaret Price Penangke is a well-known Utopian artist who has also given her daughter permission to paint women’s ceremony.

 Rayleen’s husband, Richard Moore, is also an artist. They live in Alice Springs and Utopia with their family.

About the painting

 This artwork is an areal perspective of Rayleen Country, the circles represent the areas where the bush medicine leaves are found. The medicine bush leaves depicted were originally of the Kurrajong tree, of which some 30 varieties date back 50 million years.  They scale from small shrubs to massive trees some 30 metres in height.  In larger trees, their trunks are used to store water, but the leaves have medicinal purposes.

 The women of Utopia, the remote region far to the west of Alice Springs where Rayleen’s people originated, gather bush leaves, boil them, and then mash them with animal fats (kangaroo, emu, or goanna), making a medicinal poultice or paste that can last for many months.  

 The paste is used to heal a multitude of afflictions, such as bites, wounds, skin infections, rashes, and skin cancer. The bush leaves are also boiled in hot water to make an infusion or healing tea. Other preparations were used as insect repellent or thrown into the water to stun the fish.