Foldable Cotton Bag — Cedric Varcoe

In this Dreaming story, two dog ancestors, a Jampijinpa and a Napangardi, travelled from the west to the east. At Tapu (a rockhole), the two dogs separated. The female dog, Napangardi, went to the south. The male dog, Jampijinpa, went to the north. Eventually he became lonely and howled for Napangardi in the south. She came running to him, and they married each other at Ngarnka. They wore men’s and women’s marriage headdresses, and Jampijinpa painted himself with white clay for the ceremony. The two dogs continued running east, before arriving in Warlaku (Ali Curung). Many other dogs were living in Warlaku when they arrived. There were many families of dogs, mothers and fathers and children and uncles all living together. Jampijinpa and Napangardi made a burrow to rest in and started a big family of dogs there. They chose to stay in Warlaku and live with all the other dogs. In this way, the ‘malikijarra Jukurrpa’ (two dogs Dreaming) tells the story of proper conduct in families and marriages.

About Better World Arts

Better World Arts has been operating for over two decades. Initially, they worked with traditional handicrafts. In 1996 they invited Aboriginal artists to join their projects and soon after decided to focus on the Aboriginal art side of the projects. They now work with Australian Aboriginal artists from remote communities across Australia, from Arnhem Land to Central and the Western Desert regions, from rural locations and from cities.

About the artist

Cedric Varcoe was born in Adelaide in 1984 with strong family connection to Raukkan and Point Pierce. His language groups and tribes are Ngarrindjeri and Narangga.

Cedric Varcoe is a contemporary artist, painting the creation stories of his Ngarrindjeri lands and waters, from the lower River Murray and the Lower Lakes to the Coorong, the South Coast to Kangaroo Island.

Cedric Varcoe has teamed up with Better World Arts, which has supported him to display his works in galleries across Australia and to sell his work globally. Together, they also developed a series of innovative point of sale artifacts, ranging from printed ceramics to handbags, featuring his unique designs. As a result, he is able to support his work and his family as a proud, contemporary Ngarrindjeri artist.

Materials

Digital print on cotton