Senior Ngan'gikurrungurr artist and cultural leader Regina Pilawuk Wilson has been named Female Elder of the Year at the Darwin NAIDOC Gala Ball and Awards Ceremony.
A master weaver and senior Marrithyel woman, Ms Wilson grew up in Wudikapildyerr in the Daly River region and now lives with her family in Peppimenarti.
The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection said Ms Wilson had played an important role in preserving and passing on language, cultural knowledge and traditional practices to younger generations.
Ms Wilson helped establish the Durrmu Arts Centre in Peppimenarti, where she still teaches and mentors new artists.
"Through her work, she ensures younger generations maintain strong connections to their identity and Country," the organisation said.
Her paintings, prints and weavings feature in major collections across Australia and abroad, including the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC.
Her 2020 work Ngan'gikurrungurr Wupun (Sun Mat) is now on show in the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection's exhibition Colour Is Life: Women's Work Today.
The piece blends etching, relief printmaking and screen-printed colour across three plates, drawing inspiration from the woven sun mats that have made Ms Wilson's name.
