Language expressed through pattern, making and collaboration
The Language of Textiles
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Across Central Desert communities, language is not only spoken. It is painted, woven and embedded in Country through pattern, gesture and making. For Parrtjima 2026, this understanding of language as a living, visual practice is brought to life through The Language of Textiles, a collaborative installation first presented in 2021 and reimagined for this year’s festival.
Developed in collaboration with Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, Ikuntji Artists, Bindi Mwerre Anthurre Artists and Papunya Tjupi Arts, the project brings together artists from across Central Desert communities. Responding to the theme of Language, each art centre has created original textile designs that reflect stories connected to Country, language and artistic practice.
Curated by Nina Fitzgerald, the project was shaped through close collaboration with artists from each participating art centre. Together, designs were developed and translated into textiles through hand painting, balancing individual expression with shared process.
The resulting works are presented as large scale textile panels within a sculptural installation of twelve illuminated female figure light boxes. Together, they form a powerful visual chorus that honours women’s knowledge, creative labour and cultural continuity.
This new iteration was shaped through an intensive three-day workshop held in Alice Springs (Mparntwe), where artists from the participating art centres gathered to develop new work alongside Nina Fitzgerald.
The workshop created space for experimentation and dialogue. Artists worked at scale, testing colour, rhythm and repetition, adapting their visual language into formats suited for textile translation. Large tables became shared workspaces, with fabrics stretched, layered and painted as ideas unfolded in real time.
The energy of those three days remains embedded in the final outcome. What audiences encounter in the installation is not only a series of resolved designs, but the imprint of collaboration — the marks of hands working together, the momentum of shared creativity, and the relationships formed through the act of making.
FEATURING ARTISTS:
Keturah Zimran OAM, Ikuntji Artists
Isobel Major, Papunya Tjupi Arts
Elizabeth Trew, Bindi Mwerre Anthurre Artists
Margaret Campbell, Bindi Mwerre Anthurre Artists
Melanie Blue, Bindi Mwerre Anthurre Artists
Dulcie Sharpe, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists
Rhonda Sharpe, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists
Marlene Rubuntja, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists
Louise Robertson, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists
Vanessa Splinter, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists
