Literature in our Collection
(A-L)

Boulter, Michael: The Art of Utopia. A New Direction in Contemporary Aboriginal Art, Craftsman House, Roseville East, Sydney 1991, ISBN 9768097159

Table of Contents        ¦         Cover Text        ¦         Review⁄Abstract

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements -8-

Christopher Hodges: Foreword -9-

Introduction -11-

The Return of Utopia -16-

The Art Tradition -23-

The Batiks -34-

The Plates -38-

The Canvases -58-

The Plates -66-

The Sculpture -114-

The Plates -118-

The Works on Paper -140-

Watercolours -140-

The Plates -141-

The Utopia Suite -142-

The Plates -142-

The Silkscreens -143-

The Plates -143-

Spare Part Art -164-

The Plates -166-

Endnotes -169-

List of Plates -171-

Exhibitions -174-

Books and Catalogues -176-

Articles -177-

Photography credits -178-

Index -179-

Cover Text

'The Art of Utopia' is the first comprehensive record of the work of a remarkable community of Aboriginal artists from central Australia. Utopia is a region north-east of Alice Springs where, following successful land claims, people have been able to return to a traditional way of life. The first body of non-traditional works from these artists were bold, dynamic batiks on silk, produced just prior to the Utiopia Land Claim in the mid 1970s. Since then the artists have also applied their innovative vision to canvas, watercolour, sculpture and mixed media. The many colour plates display the distinctive styles of the leading artists such as Emily Kame Kngwarreye, Gloria Petyarre, Lyndsay Bird Mpetyane and Louie Pwerle who have gained international recognition for their vibrant, accessible art. The work of the artists is a contemporary expression of their relationship and responsibilities to their land. 'The Art of Utopia' encompasses the origins of the new art forms at Utopia, the social upheaval of white settlement and the struggle by the Anmatyerre and Alyawarre people to regain control of their country.