Lucy Loomoo

Lucy Loomoo Nungurrayi was born with Bandicoot Dreaming near Jupiter Well (Purtujarpa/Nyirnmi) in the Great Sandy Desert far to the south of Balgo and close to the middle stretches of the Canning Stock Route. She is a Wangkajungka woman who lived in her traditional country, travelling with her family until she was a young woman.

Lucy grew up around Kalyuyangku and travelled south of Kunawarritji (Well 33). Her childhood was spent mostly at places along the Canning Stock Route. This country, called Ilangarri, is her mother’s and grandfather’s country. Lucy became an adult while living east of Wantili (Well 25). She married Wiyangaru who belonged to Piparr Country in the East, and had one child, Kevin, before the family – among the last to move to Balgo Mission - walked all the way up the Canning Stock Route to the Old Mission. A second child, Charlie, was born at the Old Mission, where Lucy looked after the sheep and goats. Lucy and her family moved to the new mission site, the current location of Balgo community, in the 1960s and here she had two more children, Damien and Joan. Joan was placed in the dormitory and Lucy worked as a gardener watering all the trees planted around the oval in the community.
Following a tradition of Aboriginal artists who begin creating art after acquiring a lifetime of experience and traditional knowledge, Lucy now focuses on her artmaking, painting the Dreamings of the Tingari, bush foods, water and waterholes, echidnas, snakes, eagle, blue tongue lizard and the Katnaputta. As she develops as an artist her work is becoming well renowned and is held within multiple national collections. Lucy began painting at Warlayirti in 1992.