Barney Ellaga, born circa 1928 in the Western Australian desert near Warburton, is a revered Aboriginal artist and traditional custodian from Mamballi country near the Roper River. Of Alawa and Ngalakan heritage, he lives at Hodgson Downs (Miniyerri) and has long embraced a traditional lifestyle, working early on as a surveyor and camel rider before devoting himself to painting. Deeply rooted in ancestral knowledge passed down through generations, Barney has painted the sacred dreaming stories of the Macdonald Ranges and Tjukurla, particularly the Tingarri cycle, long before the Papunya acrylic movement. His striking work, marked by dot roundels and angled colour bands, is both a cultural archive and a visual celebration of his land, identity, and heritage. A proud and confident ambassador of his people, Barney embodies the spirit of peace, tradition, and continuity.