Mani Luki, also known as Harry Carpenter, was a master Tiwi artist, born around 1914 on Melville Island in the Northern Territory. A skilled carver, his work reflected his deep commitment to Tiwi cultural practices and ancestral storytelling. Artistically, Luki was influenced by his father Joe Wommatakimmi and brother Young Brook Aurangnamarri Wommatakimmi, both accomplished carvers.
Inspired by Macassan and Timorese traditions, Luki bridged cultural boundaries while preserving Tiwi heritage. In the 1960s, Luki created some of his most iconic works, including sculptures of Purrukuparli, and his wife, Bima. He holds an enduring legacy as a cultural custodian and one of the greatest carvers of his generation.
Luki and other Tiwi sculptors occasionally produced busts of ancestral figures such as this example of the first Tiwi woman, Bima (or Wai-ai). He often did little to distinguish between his male and female figures. Although the chiselled face ofthis figure appears to be wearing a false beard for ceremonial purposes, the decorated breasts identify this bust as that of Bima.
The uniform parallel dotting on the torso and back of the figure is similar to that produced by a Tiwi painting ‘comb’ known as the kayimwagakimi, or pwoja. Hand carved from Ironwood and unique to the Tiwi Islands, these special tools were originally devised to decorate the bodies of ceremonial performers with dots.