The first major institutional solo exhibition by senior aṉangu artist and ngangkaṟi (traditional healer) Betty Muffler
“Through my paintings you can see my Ngangkaṟi work: watching over people and also looking after Country. My Country. This place is very important—we all need to look after each other and respect our home.”
— Betty Muffler
Ngangkaṟi Ngura – Healing Country brings together new paintings created especially for Bundanon alongside major loans. They trace Betty Muffler’s practice since 2020 with a focus on the powerful monochromatic works for which she has become widely recognised. Made with acrylic paint and oil stick on linen, her paintings reveal wavy lines of water that connect to radiating, circular waterholes and emu tracks, conveying both the detail and immensity of her Country with its striking rock hills and wandering emus. Through these works, Muffler preserves memory, honours ancestral knowledge and asserts her enduring connection to the land.
The exhibition includes significant loans from public and private collections across Australia, including the Art Gallery of NSW, National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of South Australia and Ian Potter Museum of Art, alongside works from Iwantja Arts Centre.
Tickets
$18 Adult
$12 Concession & Youth
Free for Members
Dates & Times
31 October 2026 — 14 February 2027
Wednesday – Sunday 10am–4pm
Location
Bundanon Art Museum
170 Riversdale Road Illaroo NSW 2540
Betty Muffler is an artist and highly respected senior woman and renowned ngangkari (traditional healer) who lives and works at Iwantja Arts in Indulkana, on the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands of South Australia.
Betty was born at Yalungu SA, a site associated with Kalaya Tjukurpa (emu ancestral creation story) and emus and their tracks are a recurring motif in her art. Betty grew up at various locations across the APY Lands, including the Ernabella Mission after her family members were impacted by the British nuclear testing at Maralinga and Emu Field.
Betty started working at Iwantja Arts in Indulkana later in life and has developed a distinctive multidisciplinary practice spanning painting, drawing, printmaking and tjanpi (native grass) weaving. Her artistic practice is deeply grounded in cultural knowledge, connection to Country and a lifelong commitment to healing and caring for community.
Betty’s work has received significant national and international recognition. In 2017, she won the Emerging Artist Award at the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA). In 2020, her work was featured on the cover of Vogue Australia, and she was a feature artist in Tarnanthi at the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA)
In 2022, Betty was selected for The Macfarlane Commissions with the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA), Melbourne, and was awarded the General Painting Prize at NATSIAA. In 2023, she presented new work in the NGV Triennial at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), Melbourne. In 2025, Betty presented new work for Encounters at Art Basel Hong Kong and was curated into Abu Dhabi Art in Abu Dhabi.
Related exhibition
