'And this painting becomes his body for life': Perspectives on the relational materiality of images in northern Australia
Résumé
Among the most striking images produced in north-east Arnhem Land today, are the
paintings given to young boys during their first initiation ceremony dhapi. Skillfully applied
on their chest over several hours, while singing and dancing proceeds on the ceremonial
ground nearby, these body paintings can be seen as relational matrixes which locate the
initiands within a socio-cosmic web of connections. In the context of dhapi initiations, the
links between clans, places and ancestral beings are manifested by being made visible on the
skin. In this presentation, I will suggest that Yolngu ritual images appear as “matter(s) of
relations” par excellence. Pragmatically composed and displayed for all to see, they assert
certain rights and alliances with other groups. Imprinted on the body, deep down to the
bones, they partake in a life-long process of turning into an ancestor.