Mona Lisa Clements
Language: Western Aranda
Date of birth:1980-05-05
Community: Alice Springs
Artworks
Ntaria settlement with Mt Hermannsburg behind, NT
Police Helicopter at Heavitree Gap
Albert & Rubina Namatjira
Self Portrait
Gap
Native birds on Country
Salting the meat
Albert and Rex
Building the road near the Devils Marbles
Biography
Mona Lisa (Benita) is the daughter of artist Gwenda Namatjira (deceased) and great granddaughter of Albert Namatjira. She paints her country both in dot paintings depictions and watercolours. Mona Lisa also paints figurative images of her family and their learning of the watercolour painting tradition. She often comes to Iltja Ntjarra Art Centre to learn from the elders and get inspiration from old photographs and stories.
In her own words: “I paint the current and old Namatjira Family and the old days in Hermannsburg. For example, I painted my uncle Kevin Namatjira (deceased) while he painted his family in Hermannsburg at the Cafe, at the Hermannsburg Precinct. I also painted Lenie Namatjira (deceased), my aunty teaching her grandchildren Carissa and Kiara Malthouse at Hermannsburg how to paint in watercolours. I paint stories that people have told me about or that I see in pictures from the old days. For instance, how water was sourced from the creek: Western Aranda people were getting water for their families in buckets. I paint people and children from the community painting out bush near the Finke River. I always paint my Country, the West MacDonnell ranges and Mt Hermannsburg in the background or my paintings.” Benita Clements
Special Projects and prizes:
2016 Cicada Press print workshop with Tony Albert, UNSW, Sydney
2019 Burnie Print Prize 2019 (Shortlisted), Tasmania
Solo exhibitions
- 2018
ACCA- Australian Centre for Contemporary Arts, 2018, Melbourne
Group exhibitions
- 2023
Arrpmarnintja-Creation from the beginning, Museum of Economic Botany, Tarnanthi Adelaide SA
- 2023
Belonging / Tjoritjarinja, Ngununggula Regional Gallery Southern Highlands, Bowral NSW
- 2023
Art house Sydney
- 2022
Kuprilya Kwatja Etatha, Tarnanthi Festival of Contemporary Arts, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
- 2022
Clay on Country, Araluen Art Centre, Alice Springs, NT
- 2022
One Too Many, Cross Arts Projects
- 2021
South Australian Museum
- 2019
Tjina Nurna-ka, Pmarra Nurn-kanha, Itla Itla Nurn-kanha (Our family, our country, our legacy), Flinders University Art Museum, Adelaide SA
- 2019
Pmarra Nurna-Kananhala untha-lapp-urma (Walking through country), Hazelhurst Art centre, Sydney, NSW.
- 2017
What if this photograph is by Albert Namatjira?, Art Gallery of SA, Adelaide SA
- 2017
The extractive frontier: mining for art, Castlemaine, VIC
- 2016
Abducted!, Alcaston Gallery, VIC
- 2016
The Namatjira Story on Stage and on Country, 107 Projects, Sydney, NSW
- 2016
UNALIENABLE, Sullivan + Strumpf Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Collections
- 2018 Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), SA
- 2018 Queensland Art Gallery Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, QLD
- 2016 National Gallery Victoria (NGV), VIC
- 2015, 2016 National Museum Australia (NMA), ACT
- 2019 Flinders University Art Museum (FUMA), Adelaide SA
- 2022 Araluen Arts Centre, Alice Springs, NT
- 2023 Powerhouse Museum Sydney NSW