A great article by Will Owen about Papunya Tula
But the company’s commercial and artistic success, while it may be the envy of art centres and dealers across Australia, is just a partial measure of its achievement. The rest of the story can be seen out in Kintore, where artists and the families gather at the new painting centre to enjoy the warmth of winter’s early morning sun in the courtyard, grandkids looking out for the oldies, a few people scattered in the women’s painting room or out on the front verandah, quietly absorbed in their work. Or the often repeated scenes in the white-walled gallery in Alice Springs, where artists come when they need a bit of lunch, where a staff member silently slips twenty dollars out of her wallet to help out a mother with her kids, or Sweeney himself seems to risk the stock playing catch in the front room with a mob of youngsters trailing after their parents. The spirit of engagement defines PTA at every level. No wonder people want to be a part of it; it’s the classiest act in town.
