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Catalogue Number: 25/382
This painting shows bush medicine leaves that grow in the dry desert lands of Central Australia. These leaves have been used for many generations by Aboriginal people living in remote communities to help keep their families healthy.
The curved shapes represent the women sitting on the ground, working together to harvest the leaves.
The different colour dots are the bush medicine flowers that bloom after rain and the seeds that get carried by the wind.
After heavy rain, the desert plants grow green and strong. That is when Aboriginal women go out to collect the fresh leaves. They know which ones to pick and how to prepare them. The leaves are crushed or boiled to make natural medicine that helps with sore muscles, skin problems, coughs, headaches and other sicknesses.
This knowledge is passed down from grandmothers to mothers to daughters. It is part of a connection to the land and the plants that grow there.