Esther Bruno Nangala

DOB: 1981
BORN: Alice Springs, NT
LANGUAGE GROUP: Pintupi
COMMUNITY: Kintore, NT

Esther Bruno Nangala

Esther Bruno Nangala is a Luritja/Pintupi woman and the granddaughter of Naata Nungurrayi, a legend of the desert art movement.  Esther was born in Alice Springs in 1981 and brought up in Christmas Creek, near Fitzroy Crossing, and later in Kintore.

Educated at Yirara College in Alice Springs, Esther was schooled in art and taught in Pintupi and English.  After returning to Kintore in 1999, Esther started to paint, benefiting from a long apprenticeship under Naata and her skin sister, Nancy Ross Nungurrayi.  At the same time, Esther was involved in important cultural initiatives, such as translating some Pintupi songs into English.

Initially involved in some community collaboratives, Esther started to paint in her own right in 2009.  Since that time, she has made stunning leaps forward in developing her style and methodology for relating the stories around the important woman’s site of Marrapinti.  Bold in her use of colour and tending towards intricate designs, Esther, along with Gracie Ward Napaltjarri, represents an exciting view into the future of desert art.

Esther Bruno Nangala spends her time between Kintore and Alice Springs.