Jimmy Pike

Born east of Japingka, an important jila or permanent waterhole in the Great Sandy Desert, he grew up as a hunter-gatherer. Like many of his people he drifted north toward the river valleys and the sheep and cattle stations where food was more plentiful. Living as a fringe-dweller around Cherrabun Station he eventually joined relatives at the station camp and worked as a stockman.[1] He was named Jimmy Pike, after Phar Lap's jockey, by a cattle station manager.[2]

Pike learned to use western art materials while in Fremantle Prison.[2] Even before he was released from prison his work was exhibited in major Australian galleries.[3]

In 1989 Pike featured in a documentary The Quest of Jimmy Pike.[4]

He illustrated a book Jimmy and Pat meet the Queen with his wife Pat Lowe.[5] Pike has collaborated on a number of other books with his wife.

He held exhibitions in United Kingdom, Philippines, China, Namibia and Italy.[1] During an exhibition of his paintings in London in 1998, Pike and his wife Pat Lowe attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace.[3]

He held a joint exhibition with Zhou Xiaoping in the National Gallery of China, Beijing, called "Through the Eyes of Two Cultures".[6] He was the first Australian painter to show there.[3]

Pike died from a heart attack in 2002.[2][3]

• 1985 Aboriginal Artists Gallery, Melbourne.
• 1986 Aboriginal Artists Gallery, Sydney.
• 1986 Black Swan Gallery, Fremantle.
• 1987 Ben Grady Gallery, Canberra.
• 1987 Tynte Gallery, Adelaide.
• 1987 Craft Centre Gallery, Sydney.
• 1987 Seibu Shibuya, Tokyo.
• 1988 Birukmarri Gallery, Fremantle.
• 1988 Capricorn Gallery, Port Douglas.
• 1988 Tynte Gallery, Adelaide.
• 1988 Blaxland Gallery, Sydney and Melbourne.
• 1991 Rebecca Hossack Gallery, London
• 2000 Museo dell'Aeronautica G. Caproni, Trento, Italy.

• 1984 Her Majesty's Theatre, Perth.
• 1985 Contemporary Aboriginal Art, Praxis, Fremantle.
• 1987 Print Council Gallery, Melbourne.
• 1987 Recent Aboriginal Art of WA, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra.
• 1987 The Fourth National Aboriginal Art Award Exhibition, Museum and Art Gallery of the NT, Darwin.
• 1987 Galerie Exler, Frankfurt.
• 1987 Art and Aboriginality, Aspex Gallery, Portsmouth, UK.
• 1988 Addendum Gallery, Fremantle.
• 1998 Australian Aboriginal Graphics from the Collection of the Flinders University Art Museum.
• 1989, Prints by Seven Australian Aboriginal Artists, International Touring Exhibition through the Print Council and Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade.
• 1998 Aboriginal Art. The Continuing Tradition, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra.
• 1990 i'ete Australien a' Montpellier, Musee Fabre Gallery, Montpeliler, France.
• 1990 Balance 1990, Views, Visions, Influences, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane.
• 1990 Contemporary Aboriginal Art from the Robert Holmes a Court Collection, Harvard University, University of Minnesota, Lake Oswego Centre for the Arts, USA.
• 1990 Tagari Lia. My Family, Contemporary Aboriginal Art from Australia, Third Eye Centre, Glasgow, UK.
• 1991 Flash Pictures, National Gallery of Australia.
• 1991 The Eighth National Aboriginal Art Award Exhibition, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin.V 1992 Working in the Round, Flinders University Art Museum, Adelaide.
• 1992 Crossroads - Towards a New Reality, Aboriginal Art from Australia, National Museums of Art, Koyoto and Tokyo.
• 1992 The Ninth National Aboriginal Art Award Exhibition, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin.
• 1992 Kimberley Creations, Broome. WA.
• 1992/3 New Tracks Old Land: An Exhibition of Contemporary Prints from Aboriginal Australia, Touring USA and Australia.
• 1993 The Tenth National Aboriginal Art Award Exhibition, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin.
• 1993 Galerie im Vinyard Berlin.
• 1994 New Tracks Old Land Touring USA.
• 1994 Contemporary Visions Melbourne.
• 1994 Artmove Claremont.
• 1995 Art Gallery of WA, Major Retrospective.
• 1996 NATSI Art Award NTMG Darwin.
• 1996 Friendship Gallery Hefei, People's Republic of China.
• 1997 Durack Gallery Broome.
• 1997 Fireworks Gallery Brisbane.
• 1997 Framed Gallery Darwin.
• 1998 Rebecca Hossack Gallery London.
• 1999 "Through the eyes of two cultures", National Gallery of China, Beijing.[6]
• 1999 NATSI Art Award NTMG Darwin
• 2000 Japingka Gallery Perth.

• Australian Museum, Sydney.
• Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney.[8]
• Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide.
• Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth.
• Flinders University Art Museum, Adelaide.
• Gold Coast City Art Gallery, Surfers Paradise, Qld.
• Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin.[9]
• Museum Victoria, Melbourne.[10]
• National Gallery of Australia, Canberra.[11]
• National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.[12][13]
• National Maritime Museum, Darling Harbour, Sydney.
• Parliament House Art Collection, Canberra.
• Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane.
• Queensland University of Technology Collection.
• Queensland Museum[14]
• The Holmes a Court Collection, Perth.
• BHP Collection.
• Christensen fund Collection.
• Oodgeroo Collection.

• Jimmy Pike desert designs Craft Australia.
• The Jimmy Pike Experience World printmakers.
• Jimmy Pike Trust.