Myrtle Pennington Australian, Pitjanjatjara, b. 1939

Myrtle was born c.1939 in the vicinity of a rock hole called Kanpa in central Spinifex. Therock hole itself is a point along a highly sensitive senior Men’s tjukurpa which Myrtle wouldnot have seen or drawn water from.Myrtle’s journey out of Spinifexto Cundeelee Mission in the late 1950’s was particularlytragic for Myrtle and her family (a son and husband perished on the trip). Myrtle, withanother son and daughter, were eventually located by Australian servicemen from an armybase at Neale’s Junction, who held them until Cundeelee Mission staff arrived to take thefamily to Cundeelee.The story of Myrtle’s flight from the British atomic testing range at Maralinga was to becomekey evidence tendered to Royal Commission into the British Nuclear Tests in Australia in1984 and sadly Myrtle had to re-live the tragic events. Myrtle and her surviving son anddaughter were awarded individual compensation from the Australian Government.Myrtle did not paint on the Women’s Native Title painting and gradually came into the Projectthrough Women’s collaborative art. She was mostly an occasional painter until the pastdecade when almost overnight she developed a most striking, minimal style with boldsymbols that leap out against a vividly plain background.Myrtle continues to paint regularly,seemingly unaffected by others styles evolving around her