Peter Molloy and his wife Christine travel to Australia every few months to collect Aboriginal artwork and ship it back to the U.S. to display in their La Jolla gallery.
During their last visit, the Molloys met William King Jungala, one of Australia’s most prominent Aboriginal artists, who creates both acrylic and oil-based paintings, and were so impressed they decided to feature his pieces in a December exhibition at their Molloy Gallery.
“He creates triptychs, which are three separate panels that, when you put them together, form a large landscape,” Peter Molloy said. “He also does five-panel works, which are called polyptychs ” poly from the Greek word meaning many.”
The gallery will display Jungala’s work from Thursday, Dec. 7 through Thursday, Dec. 21, with a reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7-8, featuring wine, cheese and entertainment by local didgeridoo performer Mitchell Walker.
“The didgeridoo is a traditional musical instrument hollowed out of a branch of a eucalyptus tree,” Peter Molloy said. “They decorate it and blow into it, and it creates a unique sound. Walker is fairly well recognized in the area as a performer.”
Jungala is the artist’s tribe name and his paintings are inspired by his native attachment to the land and his intense love of life. The 40,000-year-old Australian Aboriginal mythology has influenced much of Jungala’s work as well, but it is also described as vibrant and contemporary in style, according to a gallery release.
Forty of Jungala’s paintings will be displayed for sale during the exhibition, including 6-foot by 4-foot canvases.
The Molloy Gallery is located at 8008 Girard Ave., Suite 190, and is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
For more information, contact the gallery, (858) 729-9909, send e-mail to [email protected] visit www.molloygallery.com.