Estelle (Elle) Munkanome painted with the Ngaruwanjirri group from 1997 until its closure in late 2012. Ngaruwanjirri was  established in 1994 and was created to provide employment opportunities for the people of Wurrumiyanga and to support local Tiwi artists with disabilities. Estelle works with natural ochres on paper, Batik on silk and watercolour. Her early works with natural ochres were very delicate; however her more recent paintings have become assertive and bold in line, colour and dot. 

There is an inextricable link between the structure and ideas found within Estelle's paintings and Batiks.

Estelle is from the Tiwi Islands which is 100km North of Darwin and comprises of Melville Island and Bathurst Island. Her mother's country is Jikarruwu (Cape Fourcroy) in Bathurst Island and her Father's country is Port Hurd, also on Bathurst Island.

The culture from the Tiwi Islands is unique and characterised by an emphasis on dance - which is still an essential component of everyday life - and the Pukumani ceremony. As well as a skin name, each person has their own dance and dreaming which they inherit. The art of the Tiwi Islands is clearly distinguishable by their emphasis on fine, geometric abstract designs which can be seen as an artistic representation of jilamara (body paint designs) used for ceremony.

Estelle exhibited widely throughout Australia and is collected both nationally and internationally