▷ Wanakiji Jukurrpa (Bush Tomato Dreaming / Rêve de la Tomate de Brousse) by Debbie Brown Napaljarri, 2024 | Acrylic Painting Top Pick

Debbie Napaljarri Brown painted the Bush Tomato Dream (Solanum chippendalei) associated with the Yaturlu site, near Mount Theo north of Yuendumu in the central Australian desert. The Bush Tomato grows in areas covered with spinifex. It is a small, spiny plant with purple flowers that produces fleshy green fruits containing numerous small black seeds. After harvesting the fruits, the seeds are removed with a small wooden spoon called a kajalarra. The fruits can then be eaten raw or threaded onto skewers called turlturrpa and cooked over a fire. The Bush Tomato can also be skewered and left to dry. Prepared in this way, it can be stored for a long time.

Provenance: Artists from Warlukurlangu (official Aboriginal Artists Cooperative), Yuendumu, Northern Territory, Australia.

Ref. No: 989/24ny

The work is accompanied by the official certificate of authenticity from the artist’s cooperative. The name of the Aboriginal artists’ cooperative and the unique registration number assigned to the work are indicated on the back of the canvas, allowing the ethical and authentic provenance of the work to be traced.