Minyawe Miller (DEC)

‘Miji [blood] two. Family Country. Big hole, water. Good water. Walking all the Country lines. Yuwai [yes]. All the family mili, any way. Walk around long way. No motor car! Mummy baby, carry 'em!’ [laughs].

Minyawe grew up in the Punmu area with his sister, Karnu (Nancy) Taylor. As a young man, he walked long distances carrying only his tajitaji (smouldering stick) and his jurna (hunting stick). Minyawe met his wife Nancy Chapman at Jigalong Mission. He worked in the cattle station and was an excellent horse rider and breaker, working for many years on pastoral stations.

At Strelley, Minyawe and the other men built roads by hand and ran the station. Minyawe now lives in Punmu, with his wife, children and grandchildren, where he paints great stretches of country in a very distinctive, precise style.

‘Miji [blood] two. Family Country. Big hole, water. Good water. Walking all the Country lines. Yuwai [yes]. All the family mili, any way. Walk around long way. No motor car! Mummy baby, carry ‘em!’ [laughs].

Language group: Warnman