[1] Marawili was born on the beach at Darrpirra,[2] near Djarrakpi (Cape Shield), as a member of the Madarrpa clan[3] of the Yirritja moiety.
[4] She grew up in both Yilpara and Yirrkala in Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory,[5] but lived wakir', meaning her family would move frequently, camping at Madarrpa clan-related sites between Blue Mud Bay and Groote Eylandt.
[7] Marawili learnt how to paint on bark in the 1980s while assisting her late husband, Djutadjuta Mununggurr, with his artwork depicting his designs from clan, Djapu.
[3] During this time, they both played an integral role revitalising Yolngu art practice, which had grown stale due to repetitiveness and the tourist market.
[2] In her practice she depicts the sacred forms from her Madarrpa heritage and the stories shared with her by her father, Mundukul, and late husband.
She, then, was commissioned by John Kluge in 1996, creating Djapu, Galpu Ties which was a collaborative work with fellow artists Rerrkirrwanga and Marrnyula Mununggurr.
After encouragement from the art-coordinator Will Stubbs, she created Wititj (2005) and Untitled (2005) which demonstrate her ability to not paint strictly traditional designs but rather subtly reference them.
[11] Marawili reached acclaim soon after her 2013 exhibit And I am still here held at Alcaston Gallery in Melbourne which featured fifteen paintings and four larrakitj (memorial poles).
[2] These painted works featured in this exhibit combine elements of Djapu designs, such as cross-hatching and lattice (like that of traditionally woven twigs), and Madarrpa, such as diamonds (also associated with the Yirritja moiety).
[3] The barks featured in Marking the Infinite: Contemporary Women Artists from Aboriginal Australia depict lightning, water, fire, and rock, which are key to sacra, or Madarrpa sacred laws; however, she deviates from conventions of traditional painting.
[15] In his review, Sydney Morning Herald art critic John McDonald considered her "one of the most dynamic Indigenous artists at work today".