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Catalogue Number: 26/21
This painting tells the story of the bush tomato plant, a small desert plant that grows wild across Central Australia. After good rain, the country begins to change. Tiny flowers appear on the bush tomato plant bringing soft colour back to the red desert. Patches of fresh green grass grow around the plants, showing that the land is waking up.
Soon, small green fruits start to form. As the hot sun shines on them day after day the fruit slowly turns yellow. This is when the bush tomatoes are ripe and ready to eat. They have a strong, tangy flavour that families enjoy when they go out collecting bush tucker.
If the fruit stays on the plant longer, the sun dries it out. The yellow fruit turns brown and becomes hard and dry. These dried bush tomatoes are still good to eat and have a different taste—more earthy and slightly sweet. This painting shows the brown dried tomatoes.
The story in this painting also shows the knowledge passed down through the generations. Women learn from their Elders how to find bush tomatoes, when the fruit is ready and which plants grow in the best places.