Virgillia Multa

Virgillia was born in 1990 at Alice Springs. Her mother is Patricia Multa, her country is Kungkayunti (Browns Bore) an outstation 1.5hrs drive, south/west of Haasts Bluff. She is the niece of Traditional Owner and lawman Douglas Multa and acclaimed artist Alison Multa. Kungkayunti is the site of her grandfathers Tjukurrpa (dreaming), where the ancestral women came to rest on their journey past Kintore.

Virgillia is the grand-daughter in law of acclaimed Ikuntji Artists’ Alice Nampitjinpa who is the grand-daughter of one of the founding members of the acrylic painting movement in Papunya in 1972, Uta Uta Tjangala. Uta Uta was central to the establishment of Papunya Tula Artists in 1972 where he painted continuously into the late 1980’s. In the 1970’s he travelled extensively through the western desert, settling in Muyin outstation, west of Kintore in the early 1980’s.

Virgillia’s mother Patricia Multa and her partner Patrick Nolan are both artists at Ikuntji Artists. Since 2013, at age 23, Virgillia has been developing her painting techniques along side her family at Ikuntji Artists. She works full time at the Haasts Bluff aged care, painting whenever she has spare time. She primarily paints the native bush flowers, seeds and grass found around Haasts Bluff. Like her mother, she also paints the native Ininti seeds at Muruntji. In 2018 Virgillia travelled to Brisbane for a week long artists in residency program through International Educations Services (IES) Collage during which time she taught seed jewellery workshops to students and completed a work that is now part of their collection.