Narpula Scobie Napurrula

Narpula Scobie Napurrula was born in c.1933 near Haasts Bluff and grew up in Papunya in central Australia. where she stayed until the beginning of the 80s. Both her older brother Turkey Tolson Tjupurrula and her husband Johnny Scobie Tjapanangka were also artists (both deceased).

Narpula assisted her husband for many years in painting the background details to his artwork, Narpula began painting herself independently in the 80s. In those early years she was the only female artist working in the Papunya area. Napurrula began painting for Papunya Tula Artists in the early 1980s, and was one of the first and few women at the time to do so.

Narpula depicts in her artwork themes of bush food stories, including the ‘Two Women who came from Mitukutjarrayi’ in the south. She reside at Mount Leibig.

• © Artist image taken by Arts photographer Sabine Haider, Central Art 2008