Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula


Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula early Life
He moved into Papunya with his first wife in the 1960s. By the early 1970s like Long Jack Phillipus and Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri he was a Papunya settlement counselor.
Early painting


Winpa the rainmaker.
He was a custodian of the Kalipinya water dreaming which he shared with Old Walter and Long Jack.
Right: Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula with a painted ceremonial shield.


Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula Middle Period
Johnny Tjupurrula Later Life
By the mid-1980s Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula’s eyesight began to fail. His painting became infrequent and of poorer quality. By the end of the 1990s Warangkula was old and infirm.
These later paintings are not popular with collectors and hold little value.
In the 1990’s he started painting again and produced hundreds of raw expressionistic paintings. These later paintings though were crude and paled compared to his earlier works.
He spent the last years of his life with his wife and children in Papunya. His greatest legacy is the simple but enigmatic dot-dot background. It is so strongly associated with aboriginal art that it is now almost inseparable.
Warangkula Tjupurrula name can also be spelled Warangkula Djupurrula or Warangkula Jupurrula. His Christian name was Johnny
Warangkula Tjupurrula is sometimes spelled, Warungula or Warrangula

Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula references
Papunya Tula Art of the Western desert
Early Papunya Artworks and Articles
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Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula Images
The following images are not the complete known work by this artist but give a good idea of his style and range.