ABSTRACT
Emily Kame Kngwarraye pads along the road in her worn out sandshoes, chatting amiably to me in language that is a mixture of her own and English. She is a woman of strength, humour and wisdom. Her name Kame means the seed of the atnulare plant, a yam that grows on the land belonging to her clan (i.e. the land-holding group). This plant is significant in the clan’s dreaming stories and song cycles. Her pierced nose symbolises a natural arch or rock formation that is one of the important places on her traditional country.
