Joyce Jones

“Dreamtime is spirit living in the land from grandfathers and grandmothers. People stayed on their country respectfully with other people before white people came. Living in their own lands. Their father’s lands. The lands and spirit was putting people there to look after that country. Your own country not anyone else’s. When they were living before they were showing respect to dreamtime and that’s why they lived stronger. They never got sick and had their own weapons to get bush tucker or water. Because they wanted to keep the culture stronger.

That’s why we are not forgetting about our land. Because our land is still crying out and singing out you have to come back and look after and be respectful for sacred sites and bush medicine and tucker. That’s the only way we can know how to get medicine and tucker listening the stories. Keep on carry on telling stories to young ones. Through culture we show love and respect for people. Keeping our generations stronger.

Old people wanted to live in their homelands because they didn’t want to mix up their grandchildren. Running around, being wild, doing drugs. We want to keep them here on country. If we go away and take my children somewhere else there nothing there for them. Nothing for them to know about their country. They don’t know where to go hunting anywhere else. Grogs taken the family away from the kids. No one’s there to look after them. They’re just killing the people. Art and dancing is how you teach people and make them strong and take care of culture. I wanted to be chairperson to help the community back for the people in the community.”

Joyce is the daughter of Topsy Jones Pula and Lenny Jones Kngwarreye. Her style of painting is influenced by her mother and aunties who all live with her in Utopia. She is passionate about her homeland and keeping the stories and traditions of her people strong.