Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri: Master of the Western Desert

Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri (1932–2002) was one of Australia’s most celebrated Aboriginal artists and a pioneering figure of the Western Desert painting movement. Born near Napperby Station in the Northern Territory, he belonged to the Anmatyerre people and was among the first generation of artists to translate traditional sand and body painting motifs onto canvas in the early 1970s. His practice, deeply rooted in the Dreaming stories and topographies of his ancestral lands, transformed these ancient narratives into vast, dynamic compositions — maps of Country that intertwine myth, geography, and memory.

Possum’s large-scale paintings are characterised by their rhythmic structures, layered symbolism, and sophisticated use of colour and pattern. They reflect both a meticulous knowledge of Indigenous cosmology and an intuitive grasp of modern abstraction, positioning his work at the intersection of cultural preservation and contemporary expression. Today, his paintings are held in major institutions worldwide, including the National Gallery of Australia, the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and the British Museum, affirming his legacy as a central voice in 20th-century art and a bridge between traditional knowledge and global modernism.