TOWN CAMPERS SAY ‘NO’ TO FAMILY VIOLENCE

TANGENTYERE EMPLOYMENT SERVICES MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY TEAM PRESENTS:

For town campers, by town campers. Issue #09 | June 2015

TANGENTYERE TIMES

Written by Veronica Peters Photography by Amos Swan

The Family Safety Training group and Barb Shaw, Maree and Carmen from Tangentyere ran the two day training course at Abbott’s Town Camp. Two of the ladies, who live there, Louise and Doris Abbott, are very strong in educating the younger generation about Family violence and trying to keep them away from the everyday abuse of alcohol and other drugs. They want the kids to be aware of strangers who come into Alice Springs from the bush and have no way of getting back out bush. This is where the community come together by putting the visitors on the Bush bus and getting them back to their community. By doing this the visitor is back home in their community and not walking around getting into trouble.

The training was held at the community centre for all the ladies. The Alice Springs Police came

on the second day and shared some information about different violence and how the community can best handle them in the right way.

The program is focused on teaching women and their families about the different types of violence, for example: hitting, punching, fighting, bossing, jealousy, stabbing, forcing drink driving, using weapons, forcing sex (rape), social control to suicides. It teachers them how to handle the violence and who to talk to when it occurs at the Camp.

Doris said “We would like more training and to fix the community centre. People want to use the space for more training and a safe space for women.”

Louise Abbott was happy to see a lot of young ladies attending the training and said, “there’s been long time problem, now the women are coming together to talk about problems.”

There were about 20 people who attended the training course at Abbott’s Camp for the two days. The training covered different areas from physical, emotional, controlling behaviour, psychological, financial and spiritual.

“It helps the community feel safer when women are talking” said Louise. The program has a lot of community support and will be off to Antepe next week and going around the towns camps.

Remember you and your children deserve to live a life FREE from Violence.

To have a confidential chat or get support call the Alice Springs Women’s Shelter on 8952 6075 or Tangentyere Women’s Safety Group on 89521430.

In an emergency always call 000.

For more information go to: www.domesticviolence.nt.gov.au

Written by Veronica Peters Photography by Mary Webb

Tangentyere Artists in Alice Springs will be having an Exhibition on May 13, 2016, which will be running for two weeks and will be open to the wider community of Alice Springs. The 10-12 ladies come from different town camps and have different languages, homelands and countries around Central Australian.

The paintings will reflect on the ladies traditions, cultural knowledge, family backgrounds, dreamtime stories and their everyday lives in their communities and town camps.

The paintings are painted on canvas and board, which will be hung by the Tangentyere staff at the centre and displayed the whole two weeks for the exhibition. Two of the artists are Doris who lives at the Little Sister town camp, she is showing her painting about the sports weekend at her community and Marlene pictured here, is showing

her painting about the Seven Sisters. Their paintings will be displaying at the exhibition.

Some of the paintings are about the town camp life and some are more traditional style dot painting about old stories – there is real variety of artwork.

“We are having the exhibition so we can communicate the stories of each artist” said Jo Jo, who is one of the art workers at the centre.

She also said “Our exhibitions usually attract a lot of people, because everyone knows our style and has confidence in our artists”.

The exhibition will run for 2 weeks for the community of Alice Springs and anyone who is interested in buying Aboriginal paintings.

A NEW EXHIBITION FROM TANGENTYERE ARTISTS

MANY WOMEN, MANY STORIES, MANY WAYS

IN THIS ISSUE:Town Campers Say ‘No’

to Family Violence | 1

Many Women, Many Stories,

Many Ways | 2-3

Sista Sounds | 4-5

Time Out For Baby | 5

Gig Guide | 6

Yarrentyty Arltere

Art Exhibition | 6-7

Mural of the Month | 8

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Phone: 08 8952 9501 Fax: 08 8953 2069

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Marlene with her Seven Sisters painting

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Doris Thomas with her painting about the sports weekend in Titjikala

Artists painting at Tangentyere Artists studio Painting by Doris Thomas about Titjikala

Elizabeth Nampitjinpa painting

Marita McMillan’s Wild Bush Flowers painting

Grace Robinya painting

Written by Veronica Peters Photography by Amos Swan & Mary Webb

Sista Sounds is a non-government organisation that develops musical programs to help young girls and ladies who live in remote communities and Town Camps in Central Australia. They have been doing workshops at Imanpa, Mimili, Fregon, Mutitjulu, Santa Teresa, Kiwirrkurra, Papunya, Elliott, Karnte camp and Amoonguna.

The program helps young ladies get a start in making music, so in the future if they want to continue they have that building block from Sista Sounds. The program focuses on giving more opportunities to female musicians in these communities, as there is currently more help and support for male musicians.

SISTA SOUNDSDonna Woods, one of the music teachers, said: “We try to give girls the opportunity to learn and build their confidence. They can tell their stories and know that the world want to hear their voice”.

For the last two weeks the Sista Sounds were working with the ladies at Karnte camp, writing songs in Pitjantjatjara. Rosie, Clara, Topsy and Janet wrote a song in their language and have been practicing it over and over. Next they are going to record it in the recording studio at Karnte community centre and one day will perform it to the community. The song starts by saying good morning to everyone and explains that the land is for everybody. It finishes by explaining that everyone is happy but some people are sad when they have lost their family.

Rosie, who sings in the Lutheran church choir, said:

“At the first workshop we were all shy, but now we are all happy singing - it makes us feel strong.”

Sista Sounds were also running workshops, on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at Amoonguna Rec hall, for young girls after school at 4pm to 6pm. Here the girls got to learn different rhythms, sounds, singing and writing songs about their family and friends.

One of the girls, who is 8 years old, wrote a short song about what she likes doing:

SPECIAL DAY BY LITA “Hello my name is Lita, I love my special day, we can go swimming all day long, a sunny day with my friends and family we’re going to the Town Pool”

This was the last session at Karnte Camp and Amoonguna Community. The Sista Sounds are heading to Yuendumu next.

Sista Sounds workshop at Karnte Community Centre

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TIME OUT FOR BABYWritten by Veronica Peters Photography by Julianna Carter

Hanna Muir has been the team leader for the Media and Technology course here at Tangentyere Employment Services on Brown St. She moved here from Fremantle, WA to Alice Springs for a change of scenery and a new start in life.

She got a job as a journalist here in Alice, but didn’t like it, that is when she started her work at Tangentyere Employment Service last July, and said “I work with great people and the environment is lovely to work in”.

Hannah will be on leave from work for 6 months, starting on the 13th of May, to have her baby at home here in Alice Springs. She said “It will be sad not coming in to work, but I am very excited and nervous and I hope the baby sleeps a lot”.

Karnte Community Centre Women from Karnte who participated in the Sista Sounds workshop

The song that Rosie, Clara, Topsy & Janet from Karnte wrote

Sista Sounds at Amoonguna Rec Hall

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Written by Veronica Peters Photography by Amos Swan & Mary Webb

The Yarrenyty Arltere art centre will be having an exhibition of their work at the Raft gallery on Friday 13th of May. The artists include Marlene Rubunjta, Trudy Inkamala, Dulcie Sharpe, Rosebella Ryder, Roxanne Petrick, Roxanne Oliver and Dulcie Raggett and Beth Ebatarinja. All of the artists live in Larapinta, except for Trudy who lives at Jay Creek, West of Alice Springs and catches the school bus in each day. All of the artists will be displaying their art work at the gallery for the people of Alice Springs. On opening night there will be bus loads of people from Larapinta who wants to take a look at what kind of art work they are doing at centre.

The exhibition is called Avatar, creating artwork that reflects your higher self, an idea that comes from inside you and is put into art work. The art works are made of old blankets that they get from second hand shops or are sent in from Melbourne. The first step is drawing a design or an animal on a piece of paper, then it is drawn on a large stencil, then the stencil is pined on a blanket and then cut out.

YARRENYTY ARLTERE ART EXHIBITION

GIG GUIDE

There are two pieces that are sewn together and then stuffed with wool like a pillow. The animal or person is then sewn on with different coloured string to make the features of that type of animal or clothes on a person or pattern on a goanna.

While some artists have made animals, Rhonda has made a honey ant lady because she dreams of honey ants. Marlene has made a woman lying down who ate bush tucker, which made the women’s belly full. The women like sewing as it’s different from the painting that other people do.

Marlene started sewing in 2009 and lives at Larapinta. She gets her ideas from bush tuckers and bush animals and has sold her art work around Australia.

All of the ladies will be displaying their art work at the exhibition which opens on Friday 13th of May, 6pm at the Raft Gallery, 8 Hele Crescent, Alice Springs. Everyone is welcome.

EASTERN REGGAE & DESERT MULGA Date: 10th May Time: 3-5pm Location: Memo Club, Alice Springs Cost: free

THE 30TH CENTRALIAN EISTEDDFODS Date: 19th May Time: 8.45 am to 8.45 pm Location: Araluen Theatre, Araluen Cultural Precinct, Larapinta Dr Cost: free

THE CHOIR OF HARD KNOCKS Date: 18th June Time: 7.00pm Location: Araluen Arts Centre Contact: to book tickets, please contact the Araluen Box Office on (08) 89 51 1122

THE WIGGLES Date: 7th June 2016 Time: 10.00 am Location: Alice Springs Convention Centre, 93 Barrett Drive Cost: $32.50 Contact: (08) 89 50 0200

DESERT SONG FESTIVAL Date: 9th Sep to 18th Sep Time: 5.30 pm Cost: some free events Location: Alice Springs Central Australia

Do you have an upcoming event to list in our Gig Guide? Please send an email to: Tang.Stories@gmail.com

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Rhonda’s Honey Ant Woman

Sculptures at the exhibition

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Marlene Rubuntja working on a sculpture at Yarrentyty Arltere

Marlene Rubuntja working on a sculpture A sculpture is being made at Yarrentyty Arltere

Marlene Rubuntja’s Bush Tucker Woman Sculptures in the exhibition

Rhonda’s Honey Ant Woman

MURAL OF THE MONTH: KARNTE COMMUNITY CENTRE

Photography by Amos Swan

This month Karnte camp showed us the mural on the outside of their community centre. It was painted over four days during the Winter school holidays in 2015 by lots of people in the community who worked with an American artist traveling through Alice Springs. Everyone

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talked about what they wanted to paint before they started. On the mural you can see cheeky dogs, Seven Sisters story, honey ants and lots more. Margaret Sitzler, who worked hard on the mural every day, painted a portrait of herself at the end. There are more pictures at the start of the mural because it got too cold to work around the back.

Margaret Sitzler’s self-portrait

Karnte Community Centre