Djalkiri are footprints, ancestral imprints on the landscape that provide the Yolŋu people of eastern Arnhem Land with their spiritual foundations.
This book explores Yolŋu art and material culture through the voices of those who have been involved with Yolŋu collections over time. With contributions from Yolŋu elders and artists, art historian and museum curators, it describes how communities and museums have worked together in the past, how the relationship has changed, and how Yolŋu philosophies can guide how we engage with Yolŋu art. Some of the collections featured here were created almost 100 years ago and have rarely been on public display. In Djalkiri, members of the Milingimbi/Yurrwi Island, Ramingining and Yirrkala communities offer insight into their historical, contemporary, and deeper time meanings.
Djalkiri is being published in conjunction with a landmark exhibition of Yolŋu art and culture at the new Chau Chak Wing Museum at the University of Sydney, which will open in November 2020.
