Elizabeth Marks (b.1959)

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Born at Walungurru, Elizabeth is the daughter of Frank Tjupurrula and Mary Napanangka.

Elizabeth Nakamarra Marks lives to the east of Kintore, in the Northern Territory. Her languages are Pintupi, Luritja and, from her mother's side, Warlpiri. She is a member of Papunya Tula Artists Pty. Ltd., one of the later generation of women artists to join this important, Aboriginal owned and operated cooperative, based in Kintore and Kiwirrkura. Her father died when she was an infant and Elizabeth was raised by her stepfather Turkey Tolson Tjupurrula and uncle Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula, both esteemed artists of the Papunya Tula art movement. She married the late Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri, also a key artist of the Papunya Tula movement, with whom she had three children Angelina, Peter and Farren.

Elizabeth Marks Nakamarra studied for three years at the Bachelor College in Alice Springs and served as a council member in Kintore for two years where she worked assiduously assisting her community members.

Elizabeth began painting in her own right in 1998 after her husband died, painting her father’s (Tjupurrula) stories from the area of Kalipinya, located approximately 400km west of Alice Springs and north of Sandy Blight Junction. Elizabeth Marks Nakamarra paintings revolve around the subject of the Dream Time, the time before man walked the earth, when a huge storm caused lightning to flash and the water torrent formed the landscape creating rock holes and creeks. Her paintings incorporate elements of the storm, lightening, flash flooding, important rock holes, soaks and creeks. She is known for her Escher-like paintings, which use one colour, with a contrasting lighter hue, on a black background. The straight lines are made up of dragged dots, and are drawn at ninety degrees to each other to build retreating and advancing line-tunnels.