OUR STORY

After experiencing and living in the Katherine region since 1963 and developing a love for the landscape, culture and Indigenous artwork surrounding us we opened our first gallery in 1997, originally 'Katherine Art Gallery'. Over this time we have developed both personal and business relationships with First Nations artists locally, all regions of the Northern Territory, and across Australia. 

Katherine has historically been a meeting place for many Indigenous language groups, and continues today. The township is located at the heart of the ‘Big Rivers’ region, extending from the Western Australian border to the Gulf of Carpentaria, and along the eastern Queensland border. This large region is home to 23 Aboriginal communities and 110 Indigenous family outstations, and Katherine is the central and the main supply centre for these communities. 

We source our art directly from artists, or from community art centres across the Northern Territory.

Individual artists often come to us with their artworks for sale, and this has given us the opportunity to get to know artists from many different regions, with many invitations to homelands. 

Working with community art centres allows us to connect with remote regions and accesses a wide variety of themes and styles, while also showcasing their work for a broader audience.

As Top Didj Art Gallery holds a portfolio of artists spanning a very large region, the gallery reflects the cultural diversity and influences of First Nations people who have lived in these areas for thousands of years. 

Top Didj Art Gallery also supports and offers collections from the the local Katherine region (Jawoyn, Dalabon, Mali), Arnhem Land, the Kimberley’s, Central and Western Desert (Walpiri).

After working with artists for many years, in 2009 founders Alex and Petrena Ariston co-developed Top Didj Cultural Experience with artist and guide Manuel Pamkal. Visitors to the gallery expresses the desire to meet and interact with First Nations people of the region, to learn more about the rich culture. The Cultural Experience tour gave guests the interactions and experiences they were seeking (no longer running at top Didj).

Top Didj Art Gallery currently hosts 'artists in residence' who come into the gallery to paint at their leisure. This gives visitors and opportunity to observe artists in the formation and progress of their artworks, and engage in Indigenous art and culture, hearing firsthand the meaning behind the artworks.

Sadly, in late 2021, after the completion of the new gallery, Alex suddenly passed away. His work over the decades creating Top Didj Art Gallery lives on and is continued by his family.