Soaking up the outback with Aboriginal artist's watercolors

Aboriginal art to many tourists in Australia means paintings on bare rock and the Rainbow Serpent creation myth rendered in rich colors with the dot technique. Aborigines and watercolors hardly seem to go together.

But Albert Namatjira, who ranks as one of the most significant Aboriginal artists, painted the outback in beautiful watercolors. The 50th anniversary of his death falls on Aug 8 this year - a good reason to visit his old haunts in the West MacDonnell Ranges near Alice Springs which is the heart of arid Central Australia, or the "Red Center".

Sundown was drawing nigh. The many small flies were bothersome, but it was fascinating to watch the colors of the landscape change every few minutes. The cliffs shone dark purple and the 1,380-m Mount Sonder could be seen beyond the deep green bush land and sand banked bed of the Finke River.