Ngalnya's
Story
Yorta Yorta Artist, Naarm, Victoria
Ngalnya
Atkinson
My name is Ngalnya Atkinson, I'm 26 years old and a proud Yorta Yorta woman originally from Shepparton but relocated to Naarm in 2021. It's always been my dream to be an artist and in November last year I began doing art full time!
Leaving Shepparton and making Naarm home changed how I see my work. What it really means to carry culture with you, to paint Country from a distance and to find your people in a new place while staying rooted in the one that made you. That experience lives in my art and it's why connection, movement and belonging keep showing up in everything I create.
The style I work in uses detailed linework and repeating symbols that were passed down to me by my family and community. Each line and pattern is part of a bigger story, my journey, my values and the knowledge carried through generations. It's rooted in Yorta Yorta tradition but it's also how I tell my own story in a way that feels true to who I am and where I come from.
Where It All
Began
My journey as an artist started when I was a young girl going down to the river with all my family and my aunty telling me about where ochre comes from and how to use it to tell my story by painting my face and body.
This was a very impactful moment for me because it's where I began using art as a creative outlet, a connection to my mob and as a big form of communication in my life. I'm still walking that path and the work reflects everywhere it's taken me.
View My Collection
Getting Back
to Country
When I have the time and the space, my favourite thing is getting out camping and being on Country. There's nothing like it. It recharges me, grounds me and reminds me why I do what I do. Country has always been at the centre of my art, and being out in it keeps that connection real.
What Lives
Inside the Work
Each symbol is not only a part of my culture but a huge aspect of how I view and understand the world around me.
Rooted in Country
My style of artwork always draws back to Country somehow. I find my linework looking like ripples in the water, I find the circle symbols looking like the sun and even using diamond shaped symbolism somehow looking like gum leaves.
Connected to Mob
Art has always been the way I stay close to community across distance and time. Every piece I make is a conversation with my family, my mob, and the generations that shaped who I am. That connection is in everything I create.
A Personal Journey
Moving from Shepparton to Naarm deepened my understanding of place and who I am. My practice has grown with me, finding new ways to share the culture and stories that have been passed down to me from generations before me.