A sorry camp is set up in the Utopia Region
Judy Purvis Kngwarreye and Gracie Price cook kangaroo tails
Outdoor bed
A dedicated artist Nancy Kunoth Petyarre sits in her humpy painting in the middle of the desert summer
Utopia Sunset
Utopia comprises of several large communities and several small communities. Arlparra Store, a medium sized general store and petrol station, sits in the heart of Utopia.
The Utopia Region
Named by German settlers in the early 1920’s, Utopia is a region covering approximately 5,000 sq km of land north east of Alice Springs and is home to around 2,000 aboriginal people.
The two main languages spoken in this area are Alyawarr and Anmatyerre, two languages that have no courses available for English speakers wishing to learn. There are dictionaries printed by IAD Press in Alice Springs in both languages which makes research a little easier. The majority of the people at Utopia speak very little English. Younger ones are able to learn it at a few small schools that Utopia has, and some of the older people join courses at Batchelor College to enhance their reading and writing abilities in English as well as their language.
The chances of visiting Utopia and learning something new albeit small are very high which makes working with them even more special. Mbantua Gallery and Cultural Museum has over 18 years of experience with over 250 people of Utopia, building strong friendships and an education outlet for both cultures.
This region is loosely termed Utopia whereby much of the land (not all) lies on aboriginal owned land called Urapuntja. Utopia comprises of several large communities and several small communities. Arlparra Store, a medium sized general store and petrol station, sits in the heart of Utopia. Any other groceries or supplies are obtained by residents of Utopia from visits to Alice Springs or small stores at neighbouring stations.
There is a Utopia clinic that sees nurses travel to the various communities, and there is normally at least one member of each community who is trained as the onsite clinic worker. The Sandover Highway is a rich red dirt highway running straight through Utopia, where communities access it through smaller dirt roads.
Permits are required for specific business only to visit Utopia for non-residents and these are rare. There are minimal road signs which also make travelling to this area very difficult to the untrained.