Veronica Napangardi Williams

Veronica Napangardi Williams was born in Alice Springs, in 1980, however she was brought up in Yuendumu, a remote Aboriginal community 290 km north-west of Alice Springs, by her Grandmother, Maggie Napaljarri Ross and her mother’s sister, Marlette Napurrurla Ross, both successful artists painting with Warlukurlangu Artists. Veronica went to Kormilda College, an Aboriginal boarding college in Darwin. After schooling she returned to Yuendumu where she worked on the Old People’s Program as a volunteer helping care for the elderly as well as working at the school and the childcare centre. In 1997 she met and married Jermaine Japaljarri Sims. They have two sons, Kieran and Emanuel. Veronica has been painting with Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation, an Aboriginal owned and governed art centre located in Yuendumu, since 2001. She paints her father’s Jukurrpa stories, in particular Jungunypa Jukurrpa (Spinifix Hopping-mouse Dreaming). She also likes to paint her mother’s dreaming, Yarla Jukurrpa (Bush Potato Dreaming). She learnt to paint first at school and then by watching all the family paint. She loves colour and uses an unrestricted palette to depict her traditional iconography, at the same time developing a modern individualist style, using pattern and design in a variety of contexts. When Veronica is not painting or caring for her children she loves to go hunting for honey ant and witchetty grubs.