Gumiring Garkman 1994

LIN ONUS (1948-1996)

Yorta Yorta language group
Gumiring Garkman 1994

synthetic polymer paint and ink on illustration board
49.0 x 74.0 cm; 81.5 x 105.0 cm (framed)
inscribed lower right (below mount): GUMIRING GARKMAN

Provenance:
The Estate of Lin Onus, Victoria
Cooee Art, Sydney (as Gumurring Garkman)
Private collection, Victoria
Cooee Art, Sydney, 2020 (as Gumurring Garkman)
Private collection, Queensland

Exhibited:
Outback to Abstract, Cooee Art, Sydney, August 2019
Sydney Contemporary, Booth A11, Carriageworks, Sydney, 12-15 September 2019

Related Works:
Gumiring Garkman, 1994, screenprint, 50.0 x 75.0 cm (image), edition of 85

Estimate: $50000 - 70000

Result Hammer: $85000

It is always a delight to come across a Lin Onus. Gumiring Garkman 1994 is no exception. Depicting one of his signature reflected upside down landscapes, this painted work is a fine example of the heights his artistic talents reached.

Onus’ sudden death in 1996 from a heart attack at the age of only 47 sent shockwaves through the art world, both in Australia and abroad.1, 2 The reigning Federal Minister for the Arts, Senator Alston, lamented this as the loss of ‘one of Australia’s most important visual artists’.3

A Melbourne-born, self-taught artist of the Yorta Yorta language group, Onus was son to a Scottish mother, Mary Onus, and Aboriginal father and prominent activist, William (Bill) Onus. From an early age, Onus assisted his father in the making of Aboriginal artefacts for his father’s centre in the Dandenongs which was dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Aboriginal culture. This served as Onus’ entry into the arts, moving him to pursue graphic design, and eventually expanding into painting, sculpture, and printmaking.

Onus’ work is unmistakable. His unique style combines Indigenous imagery, techniques, and storytelling, with Western practices and photorealism. He is part of an important lineage of artists, including William Barak (1824-1903), Albert Namatjira (1902-1952) and Mickey of Ulladulla (1820-1891), who pioneered the blending of Aboriginal and Western-style art practices that continues to influence Contemporary Aboriginal Art.4

The artist’s ability to unify styles and forge deeper meaning in his works was revolutionised by his visit to the Aboriginal community at Garmedi, near Maningrida in Central Arnhem Land in the late 1980s – a ‘quest of absolute importance.’5 The Djinang artist and Yulungu Elder, Djiwul ‘Jack’ Wunuwun (1930-1991) adopted and mentored Onus, giving him permission to use artistic techniques particular to the community and the chance to learn the Djinang language.

The results of Onus’ transformation and characteristic blending of styles are clear in Gumiring Garkman. The work depicts a lush forest and water landscape. This was a recurring subject matter in Onus’s works, and can be seen, for example, in Fish and Storm Clouds (Guyi Na Ngawalngawal) 1994, and The Joy of Fishing - In Waiting 1994. In it, we see an upside down treescape reflected on the water’s surface. The water’s reflection of leaves and gums is so well executed and realistic in its rendition that the work almost looks flat, as the surface of a pond sometimes can. However, once we look beyond the reflection, the work slowly reveals a hidden depth that is alive with rich, luminous colour and earth-tones.

In these works Onus was imparting his knowledge that beyond the immediately apparent there is another dimension, a Dreaming reality that anyone can become aware of if only they open their eyes and their minds to its presence.6

The two surfaces are bridged by five frogs, decorated in a traditional Indigenous technique. Each fix their stare on the viewer. Their gaze, while gentle, demands attention and invites further reflection into the work’s meaning. Onus saw himself as a bridge between two cultures and was widely recognised as such.7 In the words of Margo Neale, former curator of Indigenous Australian Art at the Queensland Art Gallery, ‘It's hard to express adequately how different and significant Lin is… he occupied a special place as a bridge between the cultures.’8

Onus experimented with the composition and frog motif in Gumiring Garkman in several screenprints, including the similarly titled Gumiring Garkman 1994, Gumiring Garkman, Green and Red Pattern with Frog 1994, and Pitoa Garkman 1994. These screenprints spend much time investigating the riverbed and frogs themselves, whereas Blue Reflection with Frogs Heads 1994 focuses more strongly on reflection. It is only this version, rendered in synthetic polymer paint and ink, that so well harmonises both landscapes. 

Twenty-eight years on from his premature death, Onus continues to remain one of Australia’s most significant artists. Awarded the Order of Australia in 1993, among other prestigious awards, his list of accolades is extensive, as is his presence, with 18 solo-exhibitions and over 40 group shows to his name, with work showcased in multiple cities and countries beyond Australia, including Germany, London, Denmark, Seoul and Kyoto.9

Today, Onus can be found in prominent public and private collections, including Bruno Raschle’s unparalleled international collection of Australian Indigenous Art. Fruit Bats 1991, one of Onus’s most recognisable pieces, has been a recurring staple and favourite of exhibitions at the Art Gallery of New South Wales since its acquisition in 1993.

Footnotes

1. Hossack, R., ‘Obituary: Lin Onus’, The Independent, London, Thursday 7 November 1996
2. Langsam, D., ‘Motifs of a Continent; Obituary: Lin Onus’, The Guardian, London, 31 October 1996
3. McCulloch, S., ‘Noted Aboriginal Artist Dies Suddenly’, The Australian, Friday 25 October 1996
4. Sayers, A., Aboriginal Artists of the Nineteenth Century, Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1994
5. Onus, L., ‘Forward’, in Ibid. p.ix
6. Lin Onus - Artist Profile, Cooee Art Leven, Sydney, accessed February 2024, https://www.cooeeart.com.au/artists/onuslin.
7. Lindsay, F., Lin Onus: Yinya Wala, Mossgreen catalogue, Melbourne, 2016, p.6
8. Margot Neale quoted in McCulloch, S., op. cit.
9. Raffan, J., Fish and Storm Clouds (Guyi Na Ngawalngawal), Menzies catalogue, Sydney, 2019, p.84

Alice Evatt
Alice Evatt is a PhD Candidate at the University of Oxford and Balliol College. Alice has experience in the art market, having interned at Sotheby’s London and worked with the Hogarth Galleries in Sydney.

• 

  Cameron Menzies, Chairman & Head of Private Sales

  cmenzies@menziesartbrands.com
  +61 (0) 466 636 142 

• 

  Asta Cameron, Art Specialist

  acameron@menziesartbrands.com
  +61 (0) 400 914 088

• 
  
  Clementine Retallack, Front of House Manager & Associate Art Specialist
  
  cretallack@menziesartbrands.com
  +61 (0) 478 493 026