'Yawulyu, Art and song in Warlpiri women's ceremony', a new book published by Aboriginal Studies Press, aims to make a major contribution to the understanding of Aboriginal women's visual art and women's ceremonial performance in Central Australia.
The work brings to light research conducted in the early 1980s and returns this valuable cultural heritage to the Warlpiri community at Willowra in the Northern Territory.
Yawulyu was a joint effort led by ethnochoreologist and teacher Megan Morais in collaboration with the late Lucy Nampijinpa Martin and 11 Warlpiri women - with authority and knowledge of yawulyu, and with the support of musicologist/linguist Myfany Turpin.
The book examines the role of yawulyu in Warlpiri society and culture and presents transcriptions and translations of the songs and reproductions of the body designs painted on Warlpiri women.
After viewing their 1981 designs gathered by Morais and listening to recordings of the songs, Willowra women not only wanted all of the designs and songs reproduced in a book, they also wanted readers to be able to listen to the songs.
Supported by grants from the Australian Research Council, Australian Academy of the Humanities and ASP's parent body the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), the authors carried out the monumental task of providing musical notations for each song, transcribing and translating the recordings with the assistance of Mary Laughren and Theresa Napurrurla Ross.
The remarkable result is presented in Yawulyu via QR codes next to the words and musical notation of each song. This provides a link for listening to the songs at the Pacific Regional Archive for Digital Sources in Endangered Cultures (PARADISEC).
The songs are paired with Morais's beautiful pencil drawings of the body designs and accompanied by descriptions of seated dance moves.
With a total of 191 women's ceremonial body designs reproduced, more than 140 songs and many Jukurrpa stories shown in the book, Yawulyu is an epic achievement. It is a testimony to cross-cultural collaboration and the power of the AIATSIS Collection to support communities to preserve their cultural heritage.
When asked to summarise Yawulyu, Morais said the songs and designs of the Dreamtime (Jukurrpa) as performed in 1981-82 can help individuals understand the historical importance of this cultural heritage and better understand current changes.
"Cultural heritage of the Warlpiri women in Willowra is documented in this book and as several of the co-authors have stated, this heritage is important for next generations and for an understanding of Warlpiri culture," she said.
Welcoming the release of Yawulyu, award-winning Arrernte/Kalkadoon, filmmaker Rachel Perkins said Warlpiri had one of the largest speaker populations of an Australian language, yet the ceremonial practices are at risk of being forgotten.
"This book illustrates how archival materials can be a buttress to support Warlpiri women's performance traditions," she said.
Yawulyu will be launched in Wirliyajarryi/Willowra on the 27th of May and at the NT Writers Festival in Mparntwe/Alice Springs on the 1st of June. Proceeds from the sales of Yawulyu will also be returned to the Warlpiri community.
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