Nyanu (Nyankulya Watson Walyampari) Watson Australian, Pitjantjatjara, b. c.1938
Nyankulya was born at Mt. Aloysius at a rockhole not far from the tri state border, sometime around 1938. As a teenager, she lived at Anumarapiti, now an outstation of Irrunytju. She remembers shortly after this time white fellas came and told her family to go to Ernabella. It was good at the mission, there was lots of flour, tea and sugar. In the morning we would listen for the bell, then we would line up for food, go to church and then to work. She later travelled back to Irrunytju with her family. Nyankulya was a founding member of Irrunytju Arts. She now resides in Nyapari, South Australia.
Nyankula says about her paintings 'I travelled around this country in the early days with my family. There's a lot of rockholes and we used to walk to all of them. We would stop and camp for a while collecting food and then move on to another place. The rockhole at Mt Aloysius had good water. I was born here. The other rockholes in my paintings are: Inurantja, Tjilpultjanga, Kunpunga (watiku ngura men's place) , Mapantji (partilku ngura ringneck parrot place) , Ultjutjara, Iltjunga, Yaliri, Palkarli, Numpa numpa, Pukara (wati kutjara tjukurpa - two snake mens creation story), Anamarapiti, Palkini, Punu Wara, Apulunga, Attanga and Wanungtjiri."
Nyanu grew up at Ernabella when it was a mission. She moved back to Kalka in the homelands movement(an initiative to enable Anangu to return to their own country).
She paints with Ninuku Artists, and also works with the Tjanpi Desert Weavers collective and Tjungu Palya.