He had never seen a white person, and his family always thought the aeroplanes they saw flying overhead were ghosts or spirits.
[3] Before Tjapaltjarri was born, his father Lanti had lived for a short time at the mission in Balgo.
He and his family became known as the last Aborigines living a traditional nomadic way of life in Australia.
[4] He is now married with two children,[4] and lives between Kiwirrkura, Alice Springs, and Yuendumu, where his wife is from.
His paintings depict scenes from the Tingari cycle (sacred and secret songs about the ancestors of the Pintupi).
His early work was in the flowing "dot" style of painting typical of the Papunya Tula artists.
[3] His first exhibition was in 1997, for the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award in Darwin.