AustLit

'Desert Lake is a book combining artistic, scientific and Indigenous views of a striking region of north-western Australia. Paruku is the place that white people call Lake Gregory. It is Walmajarri land, and its people live on their Country in the communities of Mulan and Billiluna.This is a story of water. When Sturt Creek flows from the north, it creates a massive inland Lake among the sandy deserts. Not only is Paruku of national significance for waterbirds, but it is has also helped uncover the past climatic and human history of Australia.The Walmajarri people of Paruku understand themselves in relation to Country, a coherent whole linking the environment, the people and the Law that governs their lives. These understandings are encompassed by the Waljirri or Dreaming and expressed through the songs, imagery and narratives of enduring traditions. "Desert Lake" is embedded in this broader vision of Country and provides a rich visual and cross-cultural portrait of an extraordinary part of Australia.' (Source: TROVE)

'Ngaanyatjarra: Art of the Lands is a glorious illustrated book documenting the six art centres (Warakurna, Papulankutja, Tjarlirli, Kayili, Maruku and Tjanpi) that make up the Western Desert Mob group. This book combines the aesthetics of an art catalogue with the rigour of an academic art history, and contains both essays and stories of Aboriginal people's perspectives on their own artistic heritage. The Ngaanyatjarra Lands has a unique place in the art history and art story of remote Australia and yet art histories of the Western Desert are dominated by the story of the genesis of desert painting at Papunya and its progression through Papunya Tula Artists. However, within the last decade there has been a major realignment of artistic practice, with greater diversity and stunning developments in the Ngaanyatjarra Lands. This book presents new histories of creative and artistic practice and expands audience understandings of the complexity, richness and interconnectedness of people and art in the Western Desert.' (Source: Boomerang Books website)