Virginia Galarla Australian, Tiwi, b. 1951

Virginia Galarla was born in 1951 at Wurrumiyanga. Her maiden name was Pangiraminni. She went to the catholic primary and high school at Wurrumiyanga.

When she turned 18, she got a job at the health centre and in 1972 she transferred to the Leproseum at East Arm in Darwin. In 1973 she was married and went to Maningrida with her husband for 1 year. In 1974 they returned to Wurrumiyanga where they had 5 children.

The family moved to Pirlangimpi in1979. After her family grew up, she returned to the work at the Health Centre in Pirlangimpi until she retired in 2010.

When she retired, she was sitting at home making baskets as she didn’t know about the Art Centre until 2014 when she joined and started to paint. Her paintings depicting seasons, ceremonies, bush foods, bush medicine, insects, ceremonial objects etc have continued to evolve and her are sought after.