Historian Dick Kimber praises 'Painting the Song' [13.07.2009]

From the Alice Springs News:

"An exhibition of Kaltjiti artists at Gallery Gondwana marked the Alice Springs launch of a book that traces the modern history of arts and crafts in the PY (Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara) lands of northern South Australia. The book, Painting the Song, is by Diana James who has worked with the Pitjantjatjara people since 1975 as a student of their language and culture and as an advisor in their arts and cultural tourism enterprises. James was Kaltjiti’s first advisor and began recording the history of the art centre in 2006 on a series of extensive trips to the artists’ traditional countries. She also delved deep in archival material: the book brings to light never before published material including rare 1940s photographs of the artists’ forebears by anthropologist Charles Mountford. Painting the Song is the fourth Aboriginal art title to be published in the last 12 months by McCulloch & McCulloch, known especially for their McCulloch’s Encyclopedia of Australian Art and, more recently, for Contemporary Aboriginal Art: the complete guide. Launching Painting the Song, historian Dick Kimber commended the exquisite design of the book, saying that it had set a standard that other publishers “will have to beat”.

See more on Painting the Song here.