Susan Balbunga is a senior Warrawarra artist working at Milingimbi Art and Culture. She is a respected cultural leader and educator known for her extensive knowledge of country, plant names and uses, Yirritja and Dhuwa ceremony and history. Along with her own clan tongue, Burarra, she speaks multiple languages including Yan-nhaŋu, Djambarrpuyŋu, Gupapuyŋu and Djinaŋ.
Balbunga’s art practice is informed by her lived experiences growing up in the bush and the knowledge and skills she acquired from her elders, such as learning how to harvest, prepare and paint hollow logs and barks from her father. She continues to make traditional fibre objects, including the revered bamugura (conical mat), an-gujechiya (fish trap) and ceremonial body adornments. She also experiments with combining different traditional weaving techniques to create playful sculptural works.
Balbunga’s work has been exhibited in numerous group exhibitions and is held by private collectors and major institutions, including the National Museum of Australia and Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Birth
13/07/1953
Clan
Warrawarra
Language group
Nanŋu
Homeland
Gamurrguyurra
