Rene Nelson

Irrunytju (Wingellina), WA

Rene Nelson

Rene Nelson is an artist belonging to the Ngaanyatjarra and Pitjantjatjara language and cultural groups in Western Australia and South Australia. Rene was born at a site called Parunpii in the late 1940s and spent her childhood travelling the bush with her family. Rene now lives in the remote community of Irrunytju (Wingellina) WA and spends most days weaving with her sister Stacia Lewis.

Rene began basket-making in 1997 and participated in some of Tjanpi’s earliest exhibitions. Most recently, Rene exhibited a large, bright-eyed camel at Revealed 2017 at Fremantle Arts Centre WA. She followed this up with an artist residency at the National Museum of Australia in September 2017 as part of the award-winning Songlines Tracking the Seven Sisters exhibition.

Rene is a kind and caring woman and an absolute powerhouse basket-maker. When you sit down and spend time with Rene and her sister Stacia you know you are in for a great afternoon of fun, baskets, and cups of tea.

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Tjanpi’s Artist Base

Made up of women from the Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yakunytjatjara Lands, an area approximately 350,000 square kilometres in size spanning the tri-state border region of the Northern Territory, Western Australia, and South Australia.

Tjanpi represents over 400 artists from 26 remote communities. These artists range from the women who first started making baskets in 1995 to younger generations who are taking up weaving today. Making baskets and sculptures from tjanpi (grass) is a fundamental part of Central and Western desert culture for these women.

Please note, the below list of featured artists is not a comprehensive and exhaustive list of all Tjanpi artists.