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An overhead shot of Kaylene Whiskey painting in her studio - still from Ngura Pukulpa – Happy Place
Still from 'Ngura Pukulpa – Happy Place' (2022)
Stories & Ideas

Thu 17 Feb 2022

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ACMI

Your museum of screen culture

Yankunytjatjara artist Kaylene Whiskey talks about her latest work and the joys of making art.

Transcript

I always live in Indulkana, and my mother from Indulkana. Indulkana is my place.

I'm Kaylene Whiskey and I'm making movie at Indulkana Arts.

I like to put on the canvas like I was watching in the movie, and I was thinking, "oh, I should be making canvas, with comic to canvas". I was thinking like that so people can look my canvas and read it.

I'm trying to make movie. We've got lots of women – like seven sisters. All the girls will be coming soon to wear my costumes. The comic got lots of pretty colours too, clothes – Cat Woman, Wonder Woman, Supergirl.

It's good fun to make movie. When I make canvas I’m sitting down and listening to music. When I was a young girl, I every time listen to Dolly Parton songs. I dance. I love that song: "Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene..." I like my music and movie.

I got two sickness before, long time ago – heart and the blood. And I was thinking I should be working, arts and craft making money. When I get arts money and buying lots of food and the sickness was gone. That's why I'm working very hard so I can eat and get strong.

We're sitting together and we're sharing and we family together. Healthy family can sit well in Ngura! Ngura is Indulkana.

Learn more about Kaylene Whiskey's work