Since bipotaim—the Torres Strait Creole word meaning ‘before time’— oral histories have been one of the main ways that Indigenous people have ensured that important traditional knowledge is not lost. For Teho Ropeyarn, of the Angkamuthi and Yadhaykanu clans which settled Injinoo in Western Cape York, that vehicle for the safeguarding of tradition is printmaking.
Ropeyarn’s prints, brought to life with energetic design and colour, demonstrate an intimate understanding of the natural world. They convey a knowledge of specific land and waters, in Ropeyarn’s words ‘from the inside out’. Further, he says ‘the stories embedded in these prints are not just about place—they are about family, belonging, and continuity.’
Printmaking has become synonymous with the art of the Indigenous people of the Torres Strait and far north Queensland. The processes of this contemporary medium echo age-old traditions of carving, etching and incising patterns onto ritual and trade objects which were used throughout the islands of the Pacific. Modern technologies and innovation have changed the cultural landscape of printmaking in the region as it has everywhere in the world. Ropeyarn is at the vanguard of this art form, exploring its potential in expanded spatial practice, and demonstrating that tradition is not static, it is shifting and dynamic, and evolves in order to survive.
Image: Wintinganhu (sister-in-law) 2023 vinyl-cut prints on board, audio dimensions variable. Courtesy the artist and Onespace photograph: Zan Wimberley.
