enjoy delving into the Artists' Biographies
Tarisse King
‘For me, it’s all about connecting the deep and heart-warming influences of our historic culture with the joys and anticipation of a cohesive and unified future. It’s about family and faith and giving our children a joyous way forward.
I was born in Adelaide, South Australia, September 4th 1986. I grew up in the raw and confronting landscapes around Darwin in the Northern Territory. Coupled with the guiding insights provided by my father and my people, I saw the importance of art and representing our grand and wonderful country and its spirit so that all can ‘see’ where we live.
The beginning…
I was born in Adelaide, South Australia on September 4th 1986. I am the daughter of renowned influential indigenous artist, the late William King Jungala. The tribe from which I derive is the Gurindji. This now famous tribe came to public attention from 1966 – 1975 over land rights in what has become known as the Wave Hill Walk Off. It became the first successful indigenous land rights claim. This extraordinary event cemented for me, the deep and immovable connection with the land. This was my representative and deep seated influencer.
The journeys between Katherine where her father lived, and Darwin were long, arduous, isolated, dusty and simultaneously beautiful. Here, there’s no place to hide and the truth of expression she discovered in her art was especially poignant in works such as Pink Salts and My Country – Tracks and Rivers.
At the age of 16 I moved to Adelaide where I began to paint – my ideas, influences, experiences, history and culture combined to produce a style that was not only illustrative of ancient culture but demonstrative of a contemporary hopefulness.
Now in New Zealand, as a mother of 5 children, homemaker, life-partner and community member, I feel, more than ever, the strongest connection between the past and future. The past gives us history, stability, stories and roots while the future endows us with hope, anticipation, change and the notion of belonging to something quintessentially human.
Exhibitions
Directors Choice | 2020, Feb | Kate Owen Gallery, NSW
The King Sisters | 2019, Dec | Japingka Gallery
Earth Language | 2018, Mar | Aboriginal Art Gallery, Rotterdam
Ancestors, Elements, Heritage | 2017, Sep | Japingka Gallery, W.A
Battersea Art Fair | 2016, Apr | Aboriginal Art Galleries, London