Heather Umbagai is from the Mowanjum community near Derby, in the West Kimberley region of Western Australia. She as born at Wotjulum; her mother is Elkin Umbagai.
Umbagai paints cultural and personal stories in a contemporary style using contemporary materials and her inspiration is her land, stories inherited from her family, the Worrorra people and her own observations. Her first major solo exhibition was in Houston, Texas in 2004.
Umbagai has also studied for a Bachelor of Arts in linguistics and has degrees in Nursing and Aboriginal Community Management and Development from Curtin University. Her daughter is artist Leah Umbagai.
