Walka wiru
1200x1980
INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING $300
All art is made in Australia
Michelle’s Walka Wiru Ngura Wiru series, meaning “lovely country, lovely painting,” is among her most well-known work. These paintings feature her detailed dotwork style and show the beauty of the sandy desert and rocky hills around the Tompkinson Ranges, including the Pipalyatjara, Kalka, and Irrunytju communities. The bright colours and fine patterns in her art reflect the rich and complex look of the desert, almost like a landscape made of tiny pixels.
DOB: 1971
Born: Kalka, SA
Language group: Pitjantjatjara/ Yankuntjatara / Warlpiri
Year: 2025 / Code: PPFAMC1255
Acrylic on Linen
Comes with Certificate of Authenticity
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About The Artist
Michelle Cooper is a Pitjantjatjara woman, born in 1971 in the Kalka community on the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in South Australia. Following the passing of her mother during her early years, Michelle moved with her family to Alice Springs.
She began painting under the guidance of her paternal grandmother, Kuntjil Cooper (1920–2010), from whom she learned important cultural knowledge and stories. Through this mentorship, Michelle came to understand significant Women’s Dreaming stories from Pitjantjatjara culture, including the Two Sisters (Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa) and Seven Sisters Dreaming.
Although her mother was Warlpiri and from Yuendumu, Michelle's strongest cultural and familial ties remain with the Pitjantjatjara lands, which are often the focus of her work. Her paintings explore Women’s Dreamings and ceremonial narratives passed down from her grandmother’s country. Michelle reflects that she "listened to her father’s story" and absorbed Tjukurpa—the foundational law and spiritual knowledge of her people—into her life.
Today, Michelle’s daughter lives in Pipalyatjara, not far from Kalka, maintaining strong family and cultural connections to Country.
Michelle Cooper is a dedicated and thoughtful artist, deeply committed to preserving and sharing the Tjukurpa of her homelands through her intricately rendered artworks.