Meeyakba Shane Pickett: Six Seasons

Meeyakba Shane Pickett: Six Seasons features a series of acclaimed works interpreting the Nyoongar six seasons and the landscape of the south-west of Western Australia.

Born in Quairading, Ballardong Country, Meeyakba* Shane Pickett (1957 – 2010) is remembered as one of Western Australia’s preeminent landscapes artists and one of the foremost Nyoongar artists of his generation. Shane’s work has been exhibited in every state and territory in Australia, as well as internationally, and been recognised in numerous major art awards.

An important theme referenced throughout Shane Pickett’s painting career are the Nyoongar six seasons, and the knowledge of their importance to Nyoongar life. The seasons contain the signs that guide movement within country, indicate when resources are available and mark the rhythms of cultural and ceremonial life.  

 Audio-visual works also present further insights into Shane’s life and career and a contemporary interpretation of the six seasons by digital artist Sohan Ariel Hayes.

The exhibition is a collaboration with the Mossenson Art Foundation, where Shane worked as an artist for the last decade of his career.

*Shane Pickett’s Nyoongar name, meaning ‘soft light of the moon’.

Note: This exhibition uses Shane Pickett's spellings and timings for the seasons, which may vary with other similar references in the rest of the Museum.

Check out our exhibition talk with Dr. Henry Skerritt: The art of Meeyakba Shane Pickett

This exhibition is presented by the Western Australian Museum in partnership with Mossenson Art Galleries, the Mossenson Art Foundation and the Pickett Estate. With thanks to the following contributors:

• Australian Embassy Washington
• Kluge Ruhe, University of Virginia 
• Sohan Ariel Hayes
• Murdoch University   

Image: Six Seasons 2008 [Muguroo], by Meeyakba Shane Pickett (detail). Image by Bo Wong.