Teho Ropeyarn

A floral tribute

Flowers have many meanings and uses, which elicit different emotions or associations for everyone. Some are imbued with cultural meaning, some connected to a personal or collective event, while in other cases they are entirely appreciated for their beauty. They can also be used as a food source, or for medicinal healing to feed our body, mind, and spirit.

This impressive paper flower installation Wintinganhu (sister-in-law) (2023), by Angkamuthi/Yadhaykana artist Teho Ropeyarn, is a stunning representation of the Cape York lily (Curcuma australasica). The plant design is a singular repetitive print, individually cut outlining the shape of the flower and collaged together like a stacked, circular bouquet, or a wreath that fans out to create a visual vortex to which the viewer is enticingly drawn. The lily is a signature design or icon for Teho, stemming from memories of bush camping and family get-togethers along the coastal areas around Injinoo in the 1990s. A local spring-flowering native turmeric, from the ginger family, this botanical is cleverly mapped to his Country in Cape York, Queensland.

A striking work, it is multilayered, both visually and culturally in meaning. Primarily, it is an homage to his mother Jennifer, from Great Keppel Island and K’gari (Fraser Island), who married Teho’s father, George, in 1985. Due to his family position in Injinoo, George had cultural obligations that subsequently predetermined a specific cultural role for Jennifer when she married him and entered life into the Injinoo Community. As the in-law, she inherited the established cultural role of Marigeth, or mari (spirit), geth (hands), the hands that look after the spirit. A highly significant and important role, Jennifer was responsible for organising all components of a funeral service, from writing the eulogy, to organising the coffin, and the food for the wake afterwards. Her duty did not end until the last wreath, as this work depicts, was placed on the grave. At the wake, the family of the deceased would reciprocate their appreciation and respect of the position by serving her at the feasting afterwards, further reinforcing her time-honoured role.

This colossal wreath is fringed with the three-tipped lily flowers which are unusually coloured in black to represent death, as well as the ongoing complexity of issues that contribute to death in Injinoo. The eye zigzags inwards across the vibrant green leaves, and the pink, orange, and purple flowers, all favourites of Teho’s mother, as they radiate out from the centre creating optical, botanical ripples. Also accompanied by an interview with Jennifer, the wreath complements and contextualises her complex experience stepping into this respected role.

For Teho, his family, Country, and culture are infused in each line carved in his lino prints, embodying his connection to his Injinoo Community. These defining elements are central to, and what primarily informs, his visual storytelling, while collectively reinforcing his identity. His undeniable talent in transforming this three-dimensional local plant into a large-scale paper sculpture transcends time and place through lines, colour, texture, and form.

As a floral tribute, Wintinganhu (sister-in-law) is an ambitious reflection encompassing so many different layers not only as an invaluable cultural record, but, most poignantly, as a loving homage to a mother from a son.