Collection: Cindy Morton Pwerle

Artist: Cindy Morton Pwerle
Born: 1976-2021
Region: Utopia
Language: Alyawarre

Cindy Morton Pwerle is from the Utopia region of Central Australia. Utopia is an old outstation located 270km North East of Alice Springs. Cindy’s mother is well-known artist Gracie Morton Pwerle and is part of a family of well-established artists. Her family includes Minnie Pwerle, Gloria and Kathleen Petyarre, and Ada Bird Petyarre.

Her mother and auntie began their painting career in the 1980’s at Utopia working initially with batik before transposing her designs onto canvas. Her language group is Alyawarre.

One of her subjects is the bush plum, which she depicts in her Bush Plum Dreaming paintings. The story details bush plum seeds as they are blown across the lands at the time of creation.

The bush plum is a plant that grows in a great profusion of colour after the rain, but very quickly disintegrates after long hot summer months. Generally found growing alongside creek beds, it is a small fruit with black seeds that can be eaten raw or cooked and is collected when the fruit is golden in colour. The bush plum continues to be an important food source. The Dreaming is celebrated in women’s ceremony which teaches the young initiates about seasonal change both in nature and in women’s lives.

Cindy developed her own individual style of expressing her stories about her country. She is a highly sought-after artist.

Cindy passed away in 2021. She will always remain part of the Corroboree Dream Art family and will be sadly be missed.