Tribe: Kunwinjku

Clan: Kulmarru

Country: Yikarrakkal, Mann River, NT

Age: Circa 1925 – 2008

Mick Kubarrku was born in the escarpment country of Arnhemland at the place called Kukabarnka, which is close to the Liverpool River. During his early years of growing up he would with the rest of his family travel widely across much of the surrounding country. Mainly between that owned by his father and that of his mother. Sometimes he would travel much further to the east and then return to his home country at Yikarrakkal on the Mann River.

About 1957 Kubarkku settled at Maningrida, a settlement at the mouth of the Liverpool River. It was here that he first began to paint for the purpose of selling them to persons in the settlement in return for tobacco, flour and the like. Prior to this the only painting that he had done was to the inner side of the bark shelters in which he lived in the bush.

Kubarkku was the senior member of his clan and was regarded as the custodian of many of the stories of his people and the guardian of the sacred sites of their land.

In 1995 Mick Kubarkku along with a second Kunwinjku man, were selected by the Northern Terrotory Museum and Art Gallery to put together a major exhibition of their works. This exhibition was first shown in the Northern Territory at Darwin and was then to become a travelling one for the next two years throughout Australia. The exhibition was titled: RAINBOW SUGARBAG AND MOON

His paintings are now represented in all major collections within Australia and many prominent collections overseas.