At the centre of Art Leven’s Sydney Contemporary 2026 presentation is a significant early work by Emily Kame Kngwarreye (Emily Kam Kngwarray), Ankara Merne - Intekwe, 1990, created for the artist's first solo exhibition. Held in the same private collection since its acquisition in 1990, the work retains exceptional provenance and stands as one of the defining paintings from the formative years of her career.

Surrounding this landmark work by a master in the making, are individual presentations by Bugai Whyoulter, Carol Puruntatameri, Samson Bonson, and Lena Yarinkura.

Bugai Whyoulter's expansive paintings evoke the vast landscapes of Martu Country through a sophisticated language of colour, gesture and atmosphere.

Carol Puruntatameri's masterful bark paintings continue to expand on the artistic traditions of the Tiwi Islands utilising a powerful blend of traditional ochres and acrylic pigments with a distinctive confidence.

Samson Bonson, Gurrgoni man from Maningrida Art Center who learned from the legendary Crusoe Kurddal, reimagines the ceremonial Lorrkon as contemporary sculpture of striking formal power.

Also from Maningrida, Lena Yarinkura’s remarkable aluminium sculptures, developed in collaboration with Urban Art Projects, demonstrate how cultural knowledge and traditional practices can be translated across new materials while retaining their integrity.

Where Lena Yarinkura and Carol Puruntatameri push the envelope in their use of media and mark-making, Samson Bonson and Bugai Whyoulter represent more linear artistic evolutions, albeit in opposite directions; Bonson’s work is remarkably detailed and presents a clear refinement of the techniques passed on by Mimih-master Crusoe Kurddal, while Whyoulter’s practice is remarkable for its gestural boldness, exhibiting confident, loose brushstrokes while retaining strong compositions steeped in knowledge of Country. Each artist’s work represents an expansion of their existing art-making traditions, sharing a commitment to innovation grounded in culture.