Dwayne Jessell hunches over, studying the lines his brother-in-law Troy Drill is tracing with grass dipped in ochre.
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brother → hunch → ochre
He nods in approval.
"It's very good," Jessell says.
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Jessell → nod → approval
It has one shop, a dusty airstrip, a few boab trees, and two finalists in one of Australia's most prestigious portraiture prizes.
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It → have → prizes
It's Jessell's second time as a Lester Prize finalist, while emerging artist Drill is making his debut.
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Drill → emerge → debut
The style of their self-portraits is unique, but both reflect the artists' deep connection to their country, culture and community.
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both → reflect → country
Jessell tears up, and apologises, as he talks about what the recognition means.
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recognition → tear → what
"It made me proud," he says.
"Not only for myself but for my community and the people of this great Gija Country."
Carrying the old people's dream
Jessell's father, Jack Britten, a co-founder of the Warmun Art Centre, taught him to paint.
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father → make → him
"I was watching him paint while I was playing around with my bike," he says.
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he → watch → bike
"My dad thought I wasn't paying attention … but I kept a lot in my head."
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I → think → head
Both artists see their work as continuing the legacy of friends, family and neighbours who came before them.
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who → see → them
"They used to paint outside the old building here, the old post office," Jessell says.
"
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Jessell → use → building
From then on, things were good for this place, until it became a proper art corporation."
Challenging history for cultural hub
The centre attracted a significant following after its opening in 1998.
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centre → become → 1998
But the building and its artworks were hit hard by floods that inundated Warmun in 2011.
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that → hit → 2011
While the flood was devastating, Jessell says the Gija community showed its strength in its response.
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community → devastate → response
"That's why we get these arts centres — to remind the younger generation to know where they stand," he said.
"To never forget who they are as an Aboriginal person and never lose that dream, never lose our culture, our law and our country."
A community, a family
Troy Drill says Jessell and the other older artists at the centre are a constant source of help and encouragement.
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Jessell → get → help
"The first time I came here, I didn't know nothing about painting; they told me 'have a try, I'll show you'," he says.
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he → come → you
Drill says the centre offers a safe place to create and learn, but also connect.
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centre → say → place
"We have good times, sometimes bad, then we keep on working," he said.
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he → have → times
"I know I'm blessed because of my old man and my people around here who work alongside me."
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who → know → me
Even in the Kimberley heat — temperatures in town routinely hit the high 30s at this time of year — Warmun artists paint together outside.
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artists → hit → year
While Jessell's prize-contending self portrait is a linoprint, he, Drill and many other local artists work predominantly with ochre.
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he → contend → ochre
The natural earth pigment is extracted the old fashioned way, from the surrounding hills with crowbars, water and a bucket.
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pigment → extract → crowbars
University of Western Australia art history expert Darren Jorgensen said the body of ochre paintings produced from Warmun has had a distinct contribution to world art.
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body → say → art
"Warmun has the most distinctive history of all the Aboriginal art movements in Western Australia," Professor Jorgensen said.
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Jorgensen → have → Australia
"To this day, they're really the only art centre across Australia that's exclusively working with ochre."
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that → work → ochre
He said Warmun's ochre painting and portrayals of Purnululu (The Bungle Bungles) were unique, carrying similar significance to Arnhem Land's bark paintings, or the dot painting style pioneered by artists in the Northern Territory.
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painting → say → Territory
Both Jessell and Drill say the defining features of their Lester Prize's self-portraits reflect the landscape around them.
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features → say → them
Jessell says the stripes on the hills and creases of the skin were one, speaking to both identity and geography.
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stripes → say → identity
"It represents who we are, where we come from, and the land our old people walked before us, the marks, you can see it on the hill."
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you → represent → hill
The $50,000 Lester Prize winner will be announced on Friday in Perth.
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winner → announce → Perth
The Aporia