Women's Hairstring Ceremony 

Makinti Napanangka made "Women's Hairstring Ceremony" with acrylic paint on canvas. This artwork uses very simple materials, which are of course deeply connected to global capitalism. But it is crucial to understand this painting as something more than just the sum of its materials. Look closely and you can see how the paint has been applied in successive horizontal bands. These are not continuous marks, but rather broken lines that appear almost like ceremonial body markings. The seemingly simple process of applying the paint is in fact deeply connected to the artist's cultural heritage. This connection imbues the work with cultural significance. Ultimately, appreciating this artwork requires acknowledging the profound ways in which materials and making processes are intertwined with cultural context. By recognizing this, we can appreciate the depth and complexity, challenging any divide between art and craft.