The Church History Museum of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has unveiled a new exhibit showcasing the artwork of Latter-day Saint artists from Australia’s red desert.
The exhibit, “From Above: Aboriginal Australian Art From the Bird Family,” opened March 12 and runs until Aug. 1, according to ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
In central Australia, members of the Bird family adapted the artistic tradition of their Anmatyerr culture to depict stories of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
Anmatyerr spirituality is expressed through “Altyerre” or “Dreaming,” a series of stories about how their land was created and their sacred connection to it in the past, present and future. Dreamings are more than stories; they define Anmatyerr identity. Each person receives their Dreaming through family inheritance and must have permission to depict it.
Dreamings were originally drawn on the body and in the sand but are now also painted on canvas. U-shapes symbolize people, inspired by the impression left when someone sits cross-legged in the sand. Concentric circles indicate waterholes or significant cultural sites, while footprints and tracks illustrate the journeys and spiritual pathways of ancestors and communities.
The paintings and art language are meant to be seen from above — a bird’s eye perspective or as one might read a map — according to the online exhibit.
“Stories are sacred for the First Nations of Australia. They create a worldview and a way of interacting with land and people,” said Laura Paulsen Howe, a Church History Museum curator. “We’re so excited to provide an opportunity for these artists to share both their Indigenous and Latter-day Saint stories.”
Through this artistic language, Bird family members portray sacred knowledge, such as ancestral pathways in their homeland or Joseph Smith’s journey as a youth in upstate New York to the Sacred Grove and the First Vision.
In Doctrine and Covenants 63:64, the Lord instructs His disciples to treat sacred things with reverence: “Remember that that which cometh from above is sacred, and must be spoken with care.”
Added Howe, “Members of the Bird family know this truth and honor sacred knowledge given from above.”
The Bird family’s introduction to the Church began with Ada Bird Petyarre (circa 1930-2009), who was taught by missionaries and joined the faith in the mid-1990s. She then shared the gospel with her children and grandchildren.
Today, Gary Bird Mpetyane serves as the group leader in the Alice Springs Branch in the small community of Akaye (Mulga Bore), Australia. President D. Todd Christofferson, then of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, visited Alice Springs in 2023.
Many Bird family members were sealed in the Sydney Australia Temple in 2023.
In one of his paintings, Gary Bird Mpetyane seeks to depict and explain the Atonement of Jesus Christ to help his relatives understand it.
“The ‘U’ represents Jesus Christ, and the reds on that person is the blood of Jesus who poured out for the sins of the world in the Garden of Gethsemane,” he said in a video. “In the language we speak, Anmatyerr, it’s easy to understand each other, so we can tell each other about Jesus Christ.”
He continued: “Mulga Bore is a better community, a quiet and peaceful community, because the Church here today is with us. I love Jesus Christ. He died for us, and I love Him very much. That’s why I tell the story about Jesus Christ, because I love Him with my heart.”
Rose Coleena Wallace Nungari is married to Ada Bird Petyarre’s son Colin. Her favorite painting depicts the tree of life, her favorite story in the Book of Mormon (see 1 Nephi 8).
“I use [a] light, creamy color [for the tree] that glows in the middle. The brown little footprints [are] the people coming to the tree,” Nungari said in a video. “The white represents the white people, and the brown is like Aboriginal and other brown-colored people. The tree of life in my stories is part of our culture as well.”
“From Above” opens one week after the Church History Museum launched “A Firm Foundation,” an interactive exhibit for children and families focused on the Salt Lake Temple and the significance of physical and spiritual foundations.
