KATIE MORGAN

Katie Morgan is an emerging aboriginal artist living in Utopia. Her country is Atnwengerrp and her language is Alyawarre. Katie has been painting on canvas since the 1980’s and was involved in the batik projects of the 1970s. Her sister Jannie Morgan is also an artist. Their mother Lena Morgan, passed away some time now; however, they are close to their aunt, the artist Lizzie Pwerle and her family.

Katie’s dreaming is the “ Bush Orange” or “Wild Orange”. Katie paints intricate and varied dots across the canvas that represent the Bush Orange plant, its flowers and fruits, from an aerial perspective. These beautiful organic cosmic-like creations, demonstrate Katie’s spiritual connection with her culture and country.

Bush Orange is also known in Alyawarre as ‘akarley’. Once very abundant but now scarce due to over grazing, this species was a stable source of bush tucker for Aboriginals. The plant is more related to the caper plant than the orange tree. The fruit grows on a shrub about 3.5m high with weeping foliage and produces large white flowers. The fragrant small fruit hangs on long stalks and is green when unripe turning yellow or reddish in maturity. The fruit has a sweet flavour and is consumed raw with the tough outer skin discarded.

The physical creation of this Dreaming is an important part of the bush tucker ceremonies conducted by the Utopia women. Artworks such as ‘Bush Orange’ ensures the continuation of an ancient and rich cultural heritage while acknowledging the close bond still retained by the artist to her country.

EXHIBITIONS

1989 “A Myriad of Dreaming” Twentieth Century Aboriginal Art, Westpac Gallery, Melbourne Design Warehouse, Sydney, NSW.

1989 “A Myriad of Dreaming” Twentieth Century Aboriginal Art, Westpac Gallery, Melbourne Design Warehouse, Sydney, NSW.

1989 “Utopia Women’s Paintings – the first Works on Canvas. A Summer Project 1988-89”, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, NSW.

1989-91 “Utopia – a Picture Story”, Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute, Adelaide, SA.

1990 “Utopia – a Picture Story”, an exhibition of 88 works on silk from the Holmes a Court Collection by Utopia artists which toured Eire and Scotland.

2007 “Standing on Ceremony”, Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute, Adelaide, SA.

2007-8 Permanent Exhibition, Dacou Gallery, Adelaide, SA.

2008 “Utopia Discoveries”, Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne, VIC.

2008 “EWB Elements”, Engineers Without Borders, travelling group exhibition to major cities in Australia.