Albert Namatjira was born at Ntaria on the Finke River in central Australia on land which was then part of the Hermannsburg Lutheran Mission. His parents, Namatjira and Ljukutja, were Western Aranda people. Originally, Namatjira was known only by the name Albert, but when he began exhibiting art work in the 1930s, he took his father's traditional name as his surname.
Namatjira married at the age of eighteen, and the family lived away from the Mission for several years while Namatjira worked as a camel driver and as a ringer on a cattle property. After moving back to the Mission in 1923 with his wife, Namatjira became involved with the Mission's craft workshops, creating pieces that were sold to visitors to raise money for the Mission. Namatjira began painting in the mid-1930s, after only a few weeks' instruction from a visiting artist who gave art lessons in exchange for Namatjira camel-driving services.
Namatjira exhibited his work in numerous solo exhibitions throughout the 1940s and developed critical reception; however, when he applied for a Northern Territory grazing lease in 1949 it was rejected. In 1951, he attempted to buy suburban land in Darwin on which to build a home but again prejudice and hostility thwarted his attempts.
In 1957, Namatjira and his wife were granted full Australian citizenship and no longer considered wards of the state. This meant they were allowed to own property, vote and buy alcohol. His work was being exhibited overseas as well around Australia. However, in 1958, Namatjira was sentenced to three months' jail for leaving alcohol in a place that made it accessible to other Aboriginal people who, under Northern Territory law, were not allowed to be supplied alcohol. He died of heart failure within months of being released from incarceration.
Many of Namatjira's descendants are also painting and he inspired a major water colour painting movement in Central Australia.
