Richard Young
About the Artist
Richard is a Gunnai, Gunditjmarra, Yorta Yorta man who has bloodlines to the Boon Wurrung, Djab Wurrung, Barrapa and Palawa language groups.
He is an award winning artist who does not classify his work as Aboriginal art, it is either Gunnai art, when he is painting about Gunnai wurruk, or Gunditjmarra art when he paints his possum skin markings and so on.
I paint for healing—mine first, then shared. When I paint, I need to get the colours and images out of my head for clarity and peace.
Painting is a process that helps me breathe, listen, and make space for peaceful calm. My paintings celebrate my people, and I respect other art forms such as the Western Desert traditions because they are true to their Country and families.
Our markings on possum skin, shields, boomerangs, rock carvings and body designs, remind me that our stories need to be upheld and celebrated. Many of our stories in Victoria were interrupted by policy; my work aims to reconnect these threads with an honest reflection of past and current practices that have impacted intergenerationally.
I choose not to box my work under a label that hands authority to gatekeepers. Instead, I speak from Country, family, and lived experiences. I’m grateful for curators and gallerists who also keep the door open—who welcome multiple truths of what our art is. Together we make more space: for diverse marks, diverse memories, and diverse futures.
On the canvas I keep what feels honest and alive. I want edges that breathe, colour that restores, and layers that remember. If you spend time with my work, I hope that it challenges your mind, invites reflection, and quietly widens what “authentic” can mean—without taking anything away from anyone else.
Many lineages. Many voices. One shared purpose: healing and truth carried forward.
Empty Words
Suffocated and Burnt
Cloak of Connection