Matt Adnate
Marreyt Alam Meen - In the hands of the Ancestors (Collaboration with Tommy Day), 2025
Spray Paint and Acrylic on Linen
160 x 165cm
This portrait depicts a young Gunditjmara boy, painted in collaboration with Kerrupmara and Gunditjmara artist Tommy Day. The work draws from Tommy’s own cultural knowledge and personal experience, referencing a...
This portrait depicts a young Gunditjmara boy, painted in collaboration with Kerrupmara and Gunditjmara artist Tommy Day. The work draws from Tommy’s own cultural knowledge and personal experience, referencing a Gunditjmara initiation story that speaks to the transition from boyhood into manhood.
The white markings across the boy’s face signify ceremony, protection and ancestral presence, situating the portrait within a continuum of cultural responsibility passed through generations.Surrounding line forms, painted by Tommy Day, represent ancestral pathways, story and guidance— reinforcing the idea that identity is held collectively, shaped by those who came before.
Together, the work speaks to strength, continuity and the role of ceremony in grounding young people within Country, culture and kinship.
- ADNATE, 2026
The white markings across the boy’s face signify ceremony, protection and ancestral presence, situating the portrait within a continuum of cultural responsibility passed through generations.Surrounding line forms, painted by Tommy Day, represent ancestral pathways, story and guidance— reinforcing the idea that identity is held collectively, shaped by those who came before.
Together, the work speaks to strength, continuity and the role of ceremony in grounding young people within Country, culture and kinship.
- ADNATE, 2026
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