Welcome to the past, present and future

I believe in the power of art, the power of the paintbrush. I know that art can change lives–it changed mine–and I hope that art can change the world too.

Painting is in my blood–my great-grandfather Albert Namatjira changed the face of art in Australia. I feel his influence when I paint, especially when I paint our Country. But when I was growing up, I didn’t actually know a lot about this side of my family history–I didn’t know I was related to one of Australia’s most important artists. The connection runs deep though and it has shaped who I am as an artist. I’m proud to be continuing the Namatjira legacy.

When I first came to Indulkana, I had encouragement and support from the senior artists at Iwantja Arts, especially my father-in-law Kunmanara (Jimmy) Pompey who was a great figurative painter who painted cowboys, stockmen and country singers. The daily routine of painting helped keep me busy and helped me find my place in the community and eventually my own path as an artist. I respect the old people–their strong culture, their knowledge and their art – but a youngfella like me doesn’t want to make traditional paintings. Just like Albert Namatjira, I wanted to find my own way, to find my own voice and to be heard.

I started painting portraits because I’m interested in people and power, wealth and politics. For me, portraiture is a way of putting myself in someone else’s shoes as well as to share with the viewer what it might be like to be in my shoes. I use portraiture to look at my identity and my family history. It’s also a way for me to look at the history of this country, to ask who has the power, and why? … Using just water, pigment and paper Albert Namatjira captured the light and life of his Country. His art stops me in my tracks and grabs me by the heart–this is Australia in colour.

I often say that the paintbrush is my weapon, and it was Albert’s weapon too–art was his way of lifting himself out of hard times. He made his mark on the world through his art and was one of the first Aboriginal people to really be noticed and acknowledged by non-Indigenous Australians. This led to success, wealth, fame and even citizenship of the country where he and his people have rightfully lived on and in unison with Country basically forever. With wealth and success came more hard times, persecution, imprisonment and an early death.

Like Albert, I use art to lift myself out of hard times, to provide a better future for me and my family. Albert’s story is an important reminder of the pressures and pitfalls of being a successful Aboriginal person in this country.

Albert Namatjira’s legacy lives on in the power of his art and in the work of his descendants. The old man was a teacher, passing on his talents and ideas to his family. When I research Albert Namatjira’s life, when I look at his work and when I paint our Country myself, I can feel him teaching me too and I feel at peace. He found his own path with watercolour landscapes and that’s what made me determined to find my own way too.

Albert painted landscapes and I paint portraits. In his lifetime, Albert himself was the subject of many portraits, most famously William Dargie’s Archibald-winning portrait from 1956. Dargie’s portrait of my great-grandfather was the first time an Archibald-winning portrait depicted an Indigenous sitter.

This was on my mind when, in 2020, I became the first Aboriginal artist to win the Archibald Prize. At the time I joked that it only took ninety-nine years for an Indigenous artist to win, but what was more important to me is the way that we as Indigenous people are represented, so for my winning work to be an Indigenous artist and Indigenous sitter–nearly fifty years after Dargie painted my great-grandfather–that is what made me truly proud of the historic moment.

This story was first published in The Annual 2023.

This is an excerpt from Vincent Namatjira by Vincent Namatjira, published by Thames & Hudson Australia, to coincide with the exhibition Vincent Namatjira: Australia in colour, part of the 2023 Tarnanthi Festival at the Art Gallery of South Australia and touring to the National Gallery March 2024.

Vincent Namatjira: Australia in colour is on display from 2 March to the 21 July 2024.