Billy Benn Perrurle, an Alyawarre elder was born c1943 at Harts Range, Northern Territory. When he was a teenager his sisters taught him to paint on skin. Although as a young man he worked for many years on cattle stations and for mining companies, it was only later in his life that he developed his talents as an artist.
In 1967 Perrurle shot and killed a man, and in the subsequent hunt he wounded two police officers. He lived as an outlaw with his wife for 14 days until a hired tracker discovered him and handed him over to police. He was later acquitted of murder on the grounds of insanity.
Perrurle's artistic practice started to develop while he worked at the Bindi arts workshop in Alice Springs. His tenacity became the catalyst to the establishment of Mwerre Anthurre - Bindi Centa Arts, a cooperative of artists working with a disability, and the fostering of the talents of his colleagues. In recent years, Perrurle had risen to national prominence with numerous exhibitions throughout Australia.In 2006, he had won the coveted Alice Prize; his work had been acquired by the National Gallery of Australia, Art Gallery of New South Wales, National Gallery of Victoria and Araluen Art Centre.Perrurle had also been named as one of the 50 most collectible artists by The Australian Art Collector magazine. (Source: sighted on NG Art Gallery. http://www.ngart.com.au; National Gallery of Australia. http://cs.nga.gov.au and World Vision - Birrung Gallery. http://trans.worldvision.com.au/birrung)
