Lily Yirdingali Jurrah Hargraves Nungarrayi

Lily Hargraves Nungarrayi was one of the revered "old desert walkers," born in her ancestral Country near Jilla Well (Chilla Well) in the Tanami Desert. In 1950, as the Warlpiri population at Yuendumu outgrew its capacity, she was among approximately 1,000 Warlpiri people relocated to the remote community of Lajamanu—a small and isolated settlement on the northern fringe of Warlpiri Country, around ten hours south of Darwin and eight hours northwest of Alice Springs. Nungarrayi remained in Lajamanu until her passing in 2018.
In 1986, the first painting workshops for Warlpiri women were held in Lajamanu, marking the beginning of a vibrant new chapter in desert art. Nungarrayi quickly emerged as a central figure in this burgeoning movement. Deeply involved in women's ceremonial life and traditional Law, she divided her time between foraging for bush foods and working daily at the Warnayaka Art Centre. There, the senior women would sit cross-legged on canvas, chanting ancestral songlines as they painted their Dreaming stories.
Nungarrayi’s early works in the 1980s were created with a limited palette and focused on detailed ceremonial scenes. Over time, her practice evolved into a dynamic and expressive style, defined by confident brushwork, layered colour fields, and bold composition. Her works are celebrated for their gestural freedom and joyful intensity. A respected senior Law woman, Nungarrayi held responsibility for overseeing women’s song and dance ceremonies and was driven by a passionate commitment to preserving and sharing Warlpiri culture.
Her paintings often depict aspects of Ngalyipi (medicine/snake vine), Mala (wallaby), and Karnta (women’s Dreaming), and are now held in significant private and institutional collections across Australia, Europe, and the United States.
In 1990, Judith Ryan—then Curator of Aboriginal Art at the National Gallery of Victoria—visited Lajamanu while preparing the exhibition Paint Up Big. At the local school library, she selected a group of pastel drawings by senior women. As the works were being taken down for transport, Nungarrayi began tearing up her own piece. “That one’s rubbish. I’m going to do you another one now,” she declared, refusing to allow what she viewed as an inferior early work to be included in a national exhibition. The other women attempted to stop her, but Lily remained firm. As Christine Nicholls, former headmistress at Lajamanu School, recalled:
“She’s a little person with a fiery temperament. She’s called Glurpunta, which means ‘fighting spirit.’” (Paint Up Big, Judith Ryan, NGV, 1990)

Selected Publications
Paint Up Big: Warlpiri Women’s Art of Lajamanu, National Gallery of Victoria, 1990
Crumlin, R. (Ed.), Aboriginal Art and Spirituality, Collins Dove, North Blackburn, 1991
Glowczewski, B., Yapa: Peintres Aborigènes de Balgo et Lajamanu, 1991
Johnson, V., Lebon Gallery, Paris, 1994
The Dictionary of Western Desert Artists, Craftsman House, East Roseville, 2004
Stanislawska-Birnberg, M., Journeylines, JB Books Australia, 2000

2024 - Warlpiri Master, Art Leven, Sydney Contemporary, Everleigh NSW
2022 - Glurpunta: Fighting Spirit, Art Leven, Redfern NSW

2022 – Colour Power 22, JGM Gallery, London, UK
2020 – Reflection, JGM Gallery, London, UK
2019 – Kitty Simon and the Ladies of Lajamanu, Cooee Art, Sydney, NSW
2018 – Make Me a Sacrifice, JGM Gallery, London, UK
2017 – Earth, Wind, and Fire, Griffin Gallery, London, UK
2012 – Galerie Yapa, Paris, France
2012 – Touch the Ground, Brits Art, Germany
2011 – Desert Art: Collection 2010, Gadfly Gallery, Perth, WA
2011 – Warnayaka Jukurrpa, Merenda Gallery, Perth, WA
2008 – Summer Show, Hogarth Gallery, Sydney, NSW
2005 – Across Skin – Women Artists of the Western Desert, Japingka Gallery, Fremantle, WA
2005 – Yilpinji: Love, Magic and Ceremony, Galerie DAD, Mantes-la-Jolie, France
2001 – Tandanya Aboriginal Cultural Institute, Adelaide, SA
2000 – Lajamanu Warlpiri Artists, Yuwayi Gallery, Sydney, NSW (Olympic Games)
1996 – The Meeting Place, touring exhibition
1994 – Yapakurlangu Wirrkardu, Batchelor College, Tennant Creek, NT
1994 – Australian Aboriginal Art, Dettinger Mayer Gallery, Lyon and Toulouse, France
1993 – 10th Telstra NATSIAA, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, NT
1991 – Yapa: Peintres Aborigènes de Balgo et Lajamanu, Baudoin Lebon Gallery, Paris, France
1991 – Ngurra Mala: Les Lieux du Rêve, École des Beaux-Arts, Grenoble, France
1991 – Aboriginal Art, Australian Embassy, Washington, USA
1991 – Aboriginal Art and Spirituality, High Court of Australia, Canberra, ACT
1990 – Paint Up Big: Warlpiri Women’s Art of Lajamanu, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, VIC
1990 – Lajamanu Paintings, Shades of Ochre Gallery, Darwin, NT
1990 – Lajamanu Dreamings, TAFE College, Darwin, NT
1989 – Lajamanu Painters, Dreamtime Gallery, Perth, WA
1987 – Australian Made, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney, NSW

Selected Collections
AAMU – Museum of Contemporary Aboriginal Art, The Netherlands
Collection Roemer, Germany
Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
United Nations Collection, Darwin
Peter Boehm Collection, Sydney

Lily Hargraves Nungarrayi’s works have appeared intermittently at auction since the 2000s, with prices generally ranging from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. A standout result was achieved in 2019, when Women’s Dreaming – Duck Pond sold for USD $2,961, marking one of her highest known secondary market records. While not prolific in auction catalogues, her works continue to hold strong cultural and curatorial value, particularly those associated with her mature period and significant ceremonial narratives.
Though her market is modest compared to top-tier contemporaries, interest in her work has remained steady, particularly among institutional and international collectors. With the continuing global recognition of Warlpiri women’s art and the rise of ethical collecting practices, Nungarrayi’s legacy as a senior Law woman and painter is likely to attract increased institutional acquisition and scholarship.
Looking forward, provenance, cultural integrity, and historical placement within the Lajamanu painting movement are likely to determine value. As institutions revisit the early history of women’s desert painting, Nungarrayi’s contribution as a founding figure of the Warnayaka Art Centre and guardian of cultural knowledge ensures her place as a vital voice in the story of Central Desert art.