Marilyn was born in March, 1958, but is unsure as to whether she was delivered in Alice Springs hospital or on her community, Yuendumu.

She has vivid memories of a more traditional way of life that surrounded her as a child—being covered entirely in red ochre when she was sick, seeing babies carried in wooden coolamons and greeting her mother coming home from hunting trips with seeds to grind, calling out “Ngurlu ngurlu ngurlu” (Warlpiri for “seed”).  

She also had the opportunity to watch her mother painting traditional stories and later painted and sold her own work through Yuendumu Art Centre. Marilyn has been living in Katherine for the past 14 years.  She currently works as a translator at the Court House and Hospital.  

Marilyn uses a very meticulous method of putting her dot work down and takes a very long time to finish her work. The background work is talking about her country and the specific vegetation that grows there.