Gallery One Indigenous Artist Goompi Ugerabah (Skin name: Tjuparula, Language spoken: Gandawal) and his dance troupe Bundjalung Kunjiel have been invited to open the Steve Irwin Gala Dinner in LA on Saturday May 13, 2017. The charity dinner is held annually to celebrate the life of Steve Irwin and this year the dinner will take place at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills L.A. Goompi will join host and MC Rebel Wilson, Terri, Bindi and Robert Irwin at this star-studded event to raise awareness and support the legacy of Steve Irwin’s life as the original Wildlife Warrior. The evening will be about the importance of wildlife protection, the preservation of wild places and the vision that Steve Irwin promoted –that humans and wildlife can exist harmoniously on this planet. At this dinner, Goompi (his name means ‘possum’ from the place of goanna) will present his skin father’s stories through tribal song, dance and story telling. People familiar with Goompi’s original art know that he records all of these stories as stunning visual representations on canvas, providing the narrative on the back of the canvas.
We are familiar with stories about his tribal ceremonies, his ‘3 Ancestors’ (Koala, Brolga and the Pelican), the ‘Kingingyarra’ (Oyster and wildhop bush), ‘The Koogols’ (Two Dingoes) and “Yugeree’s’ (Gathering Pippies). His paintings are a combination of colour and rhythm; each with its own unique beat of intricate and precise dots and line work representing his ancestral lands and dreamtime. They are eye-catching and celebratory paintings worthy of any Australian Aboriginal art collection. Goompi’s art is held in public and private collections both in Australia and Overseas. Goompi’s art is found in the collections of The Central Intelligence Agency (C.I.A ) in Langley,Virginia, U.S as well as HRH Princess Benedikte of Denmark.Both also witnessed dance and song from Goompi’s dance troupe.
Goompi’s ancestors are originally from Goring Goring people near Maryborough, QLD. After settlement his great-great-grandmother was forced to move to the Ngnarangwal tribal area (Gold Coast) and Minjungbal tribal area (Tweed Heads), where Goompi and the last few generations of his family were born and bred. Goompi has exhibited widely in South East Queensland, Northern New South Wales and is now in galleries around the world. Gallery One will be hosting a solo exhibition of Goompi in August 1st – 31st, 2017.
