Family is an integral part of the lives and artworks of the Spinifex Hill Artists. Many of the artists at the studio are connected to each other through family affiliations; they are brothers and sisters, aunties and uncles for each other. Many of their paintings feature tales of the great resilience and strength of elders, or reflect the pervasive desire of the artists to communicate the importance of culture and traditional knowledge to their children and grandchildren. Often the intergenerational transfer of knowledge and culture happens, not so much through the act of painting, but through the storytelling that accompanies it. Older artists are driven to share stories that form and maintain connections to Country for young people, to ensure that life in town does not equate to a loss of cultural and traditional knowledge of Country.

MARAPIKURRINYA IS THE COUNTRY HERE, AND THIS AREA PORT HEDLAND AND ALL AROUND IT. THIS PLACE HAD A PEOPLE FROM OTHER TRIBES, BUT WE GROW UP WITH THEM. WE TRY TO BE IN THIS PLACE AS ONE TRIBE NOW. WILLIAM NYAPURU GARDINER