Keith paints the well known story of 'Piltati' and also the story of Nyapari, which is one which was passed down to Keith from his father and relating to his ancestral home (and where the community of the same name was later founded) it is a more personal story which is handed down within the family.

Both paintings depict the Nyapari Tjukurpa and so the relationship between the paintings is variations on the retelling of the same story, which both employ a like colour scheme. In the past Keith has chosen to depict the Piltati story in burgundys and reds (not always the case however), Keith has generally been depicting the Nyapari Tjukurrpa in the off whites as in the example painting (made in 2018) and this work.

Keith says the Nyapari Tjukurrpa depicts the story of a family living in the hills (Mann Ranges) at Nyapari. The men are making Tjara (shields) when they find kangaroos nearby, which they kill and return to the family camp, cutting the kangaroo meat into pieces with the flint knives attached to the shields. Portions of the kangaroo meat remain in the hills as rocky outcrops. The family, happy and fed, travel to Watarru, some days walk to the South West where plentiful water is in the rock holes (depicted here) and the men resume their hunting. This story is one which was told many times (along with secret aspects which cannot be revealed to non-anangu) by his father.

This work to our knowledge is the largest depiction of the Nyapari Tjukurrpa Keith has ever painted. He has returned to working on smaller canvases for some time and to work on different stories. I can tell he is immensely proud of this painting and this is it in it’s completed state.