Selina Teece Pwerle

DOB: 1977
BORN: Antarrengeny, Utopia NT
LANGUAGE: Alyawarr
COMMUNITY: Ampilatwatja, NT

Selina Teece Pwerle was born in 1977 in her traditional land of Antarrengeny, which lies approximately 300 km northeast of Alice Springs in Alyawarr country. She lives in the Ampiltwatja community and Alyawarr country with her two children and a large extended family.

Selina grew up surrounded by emerging artists who were finding their artistic talents in the new art movement that exploded in the Utopia region in the late ’70s and ’80s, with the introduction of batik work on silk and later acrylic paint on canvas.  Selina has fond memories of playing around these artists as they painted with the children of other artists when she accompanied her mother, Lulu Petyarre Teece, known for her silk batik work and beautiful landscapes. Selina watched and learned from these women, even developing her hand in the labour-intensive task of dotting as she helped her mother, aunts, and elders fill up the backgrounds of their stories on canvas with colourful dots.

The theme of her paintings relates to the stories from her father’s country, Antarrengeny.  Her painting style can vary from patterns of intricate dots when illustrating a landscape of her country to bold linear work when representing body paint design.  Selina is also inspired by other designs she sees in her country, such as the Kurrajong seeds and pods, Gum blossoms of the Bloodwood tree and Akatyerre – Bush tomato.  Selina is constantly experimenting with design and colour.

Selina’s artworks have been exhibited nationally and internationally and received with great enthusiasm and interest. Through her hard work, she has established herself as an important emerging Australian artist.