The Tenants' Union was very pleased to commission this series of artworks by Aboriginal Artist Millmullian.

Millmullian is a Wailwaan, Ngiyampaa and Yuin man and a proud father of eight children. He participates in Aboriginal cultural men’s business and cultural ceremony regularly.

Millmullian is a well-known artist skilled in many areas including painting, tools and weapons making, weaving, emu egg carving and cultural dance and song performance. He also regularly works in schools and in community teaching Aboriginal art, dance and culture.

In his artwork, Millmullian depicts stories of the dreamtime, stories of personal experiences and interactions with the natural environment on country. Millmullian was also taught art, stories and cultural skills by many different Elders over his life whilst growing up among his people at Gingie Mission and Namoi Village near Walgett NSW, where there were people living together from all different tribes.

Together Millmullian and his wife Nyimirr raise their children through cultural ways such as speaking several Aboriginal languages at home, regularly spending time in country with their children and at significant sites, teaching the children about bush foods and medicine, cultural law/lore and cultural ceremony, song and dance.

About the artworks

By Millmullian – the artist

Ngurampaa depicts Wawai the Rainbow Serpent travelling across country creating rivers, streams and waterholes. The animals represent all the different groups of people, their totems and their home country. The lines on the outside represent the different sacred places in each country. The dots in the border represent the eyes of the ancestors that continue to watch over all of country everywhere. It is upon this history and living culture of today that all homes exist in what is now called “Australia”.

Burralgaa Walaay (Brolga’s Camp/Nest/Home) shows two Brolgas caring for their eggs in a nest that they built together. The Brolgas are celebrating the security and love in which they will nurture their future young. The five concentric circles represent the different locations where the Brolga’s may nest given the right conditions. The red arched lines represent the water and giver of life they need to provide for their young.

Dinewan dhina means Emu’s tracks. This painting depicts concentric circles linked by four lines which represent different places/homes on country linked by a common Wailwaan law. The large emu footprints in the centre represent the people who carry the Wailwaan law and the smaller emu footprints represent the people who walk in that law. The outer lines represent the strength and security we have within our Wailwaan law.

Dhubany is our spirit which is here represented by our totem animals. To help our spirit stay strong we need a safe place to live, a safe place to call home. The line in the middle of the animals represents our songlines that connect all our people and all our totems. We sing up our songlines to take care of ourselves, our country and our totems. In our cultural way we take care of our totems making sure our totem animals are safe and well for now and for future generations. In this way we also take care of our spirit.

Wawai travelled our country creating land forms, waterholes and rivers all of which are important to our people for spiritual and physical wellbeing. The concentric circles represent campsites of different family groups across country. The country was created for all people to share so all people deserve a safe place to call home on country.

Mullian is the Wedge Tailed Eagle, the bird in the centre. The larger circles in the painting represent the larger communities of people and the smaller circles represent the smaller communities. The outside wavy lines connecting the communities are the paths which the people travel between the communities. The smaller shorter lines connecting to the central wavy lines represent the knowledge gained from those communities coming together to create a stronger and more stable world. The Wedge Tailed Eagle in the centre represents the strength of unity in people coming together through fair and just law. The orange lines on the outside represent the wing feathers of the Wedge Tailed Eagle flying over the communities to oversee and protect the people.