Photo © Martumili Artists
SHOP ARTWORKS BY CORBAN
Born 1994
"My name is Corban Clause Williams. I was born in Newman hospital. Mum, Dad, Nanna and Pop lived in Jigalong before, but they moved into town before I was born. I’m one of seven children. I grew up in Newman- this is my home. I like to travel but I worry about home. When I was younger I went to Newman Primary School and Newman Senior High School.
My Nanna and Pop used to take us out hunting for bush tucker. I’d help them make a fire and tea. Me and Pop would go out to the swamp area between Newman and Kumarina. Nan, Pop, Mum and Dad would tell funny stories about our family and make me laugh.
I work at Martumili, helping to sell the paintings and get the canvas ready. With Martumili I travelled too. Gold Coast was my first big trip and [I've been to] Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and Paris.
I'm [also] a Martumili artist. I come to Martumili to paint about my Country, where my grandfather walked around and collected food, and visited the same rockholes I do. I paint to keep my culture and stories and share with others. Sometimes I paint with my nanna Jakayu [Biljabu] (dec.). I learn from her a little bit. My skin name is Milangka, and Kaalpa (Kalypa, Canning Stock Route Well 23) is my grandfather’s Country. I was really happy to go see my grandfather's Country- pukurlpa (happy). When I paint I feel like its home. Doing it on the canvas, I feel like I'm standing there back at home."
- Corban Clause Williams
Corban Clause Williams is one of the most prominent emerging artists from the younger generation of Martumili Artists. As a teenager, Corban began working at Martumili, helping to sell artworks and prepare canvases. Over time, he began painting collaboratively with his Nanna Jakayu Biljabu (dec.). His works today frequently depict his grandfather’s Country, Kaalpa (Kalypa, Canning Stock Route Well 23), a landscape imbued with deep cultural significance.
Corban has exhibited widely in Australia and internationally, with notable exhibitions including Belonging to Martu (Harvey Arts Project, Idaho, US, 2020), Tracks We Share (Art Gallery of Western Australia, 2022), and Le Chant Aborigene des Sept Soeurs (IDAIA, Paris, 2023). He was a finalist in the prestigious Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award (NATSIAA, 2023) and won the MA Financial Award at Sydney Contemporary (2023). His works are held in major collections, including The Art Gallery of Western Australia and the MacQuarie Collection.
WATCH CORBAN'S ARTIST PROFILE FILM
WATCH CORBAN'S ARTIST PROFILE FILM (TRACKS WE SHARE)
COLLECTIONS
Macquarie Collection
Art Gallery of Western Australia
AWARDS
2023 Finalist, Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award, NATSIAA
2023 Finalist, The Banyule Award for Works on Paper
2023 Finalist, John Stringer Art Prize, John Curtin Gallery
2023 MA Financial Award, Sydney Contemporary, NSW
2023 Ramsay Art Prize Finalist, Art Gallery of South Australia
2020 Besting Painting by Pilbara Indigenous Artist, Cossack Art Awards
2019 Rio Tinto Midwest Aboriginal Art Award, Midwest Arts Awards
2018 Best Work by an Artist Under 25, Hedland Art Awards
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2024 Sydney Contemporary, Emilia Galatis Projects, NSW
2023 Sydney Contemporary, Emilia Galatis Projects, NSW
2019 'Kaalpa', The Port Hedland Courthouse Gallery. WA
