Maringka Tunkin was born in 1955 and raised in Amata, South Australia. She is the daughter of the late Kunmanara (Paniny) Mick and Mick Wikilyiri, both senior and highly regarded painters at Tjala Arts. After attending high school at Yurara, Maringka returned to Amata to paint at the Tjurma Homelands Art and Craft Centre, where she painted on canvas and created pieces of batik. Maringka returned to painting in 2007 when she joined the other artists at Tjala Arts.

In addition to her own successful painting career, Maringka also paints on impressive large-scale collaborative canvases with her four sisters - Yaritji Young, Tjungkara Ken, Freda Brady and Sandra Ken - who together form the acclaimed Ken Sisters' Collaborative.