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ABORIGINAL ART
Important Consumer Notice
Paintings painted by Luke Brothers are hand made and hand painted. This web site provides interested parties with a display of their past works in addition to items that are currently available for sale. When ordering from the examples shown please understand that size and form may vary from time to time. No two paintings are the same. You can be guaranteed that each piece is a one off Australian original, signed by the artist and is not mass produced or duplicated.
The receiver is responsible for all receiving country import taxes, VAT or any other associated duties. Please note that all prices quoted in this site are in AUD. Freighting costs vary considerably and customers are requested to make their own inquiries prior to dispatch.
Aboriginal art is said to be the oldest in the world. Aboriginal people were certainly the original inhabitants of Australia and have lived here for at least 40,000 years. Their paintings have been discovered on rocks and cave walls throughout Australia - layer upon layer of designs, some dating back 10,000 years. The engravings found on some rocks have proved to be 20,000 years old.
Aboriginals relied on the earth to meet all their needs, including their art materials. Different ochres and clays provided most of the colours. They were used for most forms of painting, including body painting which was linked to song and dance. This tradition is still carried on today by the many dance groups performing Aboriginal dances throughout Australia. Each dance and song often features Dreamtime, which happened a long time ago when earth was created.
Aboriginal art is constantly changing with the times. The use of new materials, such as canvas and synthetic paints, has led to many new art forms with much brighter paintings being produced. We now have what is called Urban Art, the work of traditional and contemporary artists. But the paintings' subjects haven't changed. Most Aboriginal paintings still depict the land, its animals and its people, as did the ancient paintings on cave walls.
Aboriginals never cultivated the land as the land already fulfilled all their needs. Berries, fruit, insects, birds, fish and wild animals supplied all their dietary needs and nature also gave them materials to make weapons.
The Bunjalung tribe is one of the largest of the many Aboriginal tribes throughout Australia. Their lands extend from just North of Grafton up to the Gold Coast. The people lived in family groups and spoke many different dialects. With European settlement in early 1800s life changed for the Aboriginal and it was never to be the some again. In this changing world the Aboriginal people strive to maintain their identify through their art.
Stephen and Gary Luke were born in Grafton on the North Coast of New South Wales. They are descended from the Bunjalung people, a very large tribe from the North Coast.
Stephen and Gary now live at Waratah, New South Wales. They have never had art lessons and they, like many Aboriginals, believe their talents to be a gift from the Dreamtime. Their art is a mixture of traditional and modern, using both traditional and bright colours to produce their contemporary art.