Lot 94: TREVOR NICKOLLS (BORN 1949)

Spirit Above Australia
signed and dated 'Nickolls 2000' (lower right)
synthetic polymer paint on linen
213 x 122 cm
Painted in 2000

Acquired directly from the Artist
Private collection, Adelaide

The painting is about the Spirit of Australia being omnipresent from the beginning of the Dreaming and still now protects the Aboriginal people and their culture.

The painting depicts the top part of Australia and the waters around it, in addition to the sky with clouds and the cosmos with stars - all created during the Dreaming or the Creation Time.

The large figure in the top of the painting is a Wunjina spirit, an important creation spirit in Australian Aboriginal religion. Here the Wunjina spirit represents the spirit who created the land, sea, sky and beings inhabiting Australia and the cosmos. Nickolls calls the spirit "creative artist from space who came down and created the world during the Dreamtime when all things were created". The Wunjina is carrying a tucker bag which is used for carrying the elements which are necessary for creation.

The Spirit above Australia is an old time Spirit being which serves also as a protector.

An Aboriginal person is seated on the land of Australia in the lower part of the painting, playing a dijeridoo. The action of playing the dijeridoo contributes to the maintenance of the Aboriginal culture of Australia.

The boomerangs with the heads of birds seen flying in the sky, allude to the cyclical nature of life and how things come back to people, particularly their culture, which in the end cannot be lost.

The sky has two types of stars, the double oblong intersecting which is the male star and the star shape created by dots which is the female star.

A 10% Goods and Services tax (G.S.T) will be charged on the Buyer's Premium in all lots in this sale