Yirawala, (Australian Aborigine) Artist and Man

by Sandra Le Brun Holmes

92 pages, Hardcover

First published January 19, 1972

Reviews

[Mark Isaak · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book attempts to be three things: (1) An art book, showing the paintings of one of the foremost Australian aboriginal artists; (2) a book of mythology, telling the myths that the paintings depict; and (3) a biography of the the artist, including a call for preservation of aboriginal culture. The first is the only job it does well, with many impressive photos and reproductions. The myths add to one's understanding of the art and include some myths I have not seen in other books of Australian mythology, but one important myth was alluded to in several photo captions but never related in full. The biography told of the important events in Yirawala's life, but did not leave me feeling that I knew the man.