art and soul

WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned that the following article references people who are deceased.

I grew up in a very political household. I was taken to rallies as a child and we regularly talked about land rights at the dinner table. And yet, as an Aboriginal person growing up in metropolitan Sydney, I sometimes struggled to find my place and identity. I always knew where I was from but I grew up off-Country and there were very few, if any, other Aboriginal kids at my school. Outside of home, I couldn’t see or feel very much around me that reflected who I was or that anchored me to my cultural identity. So I found connection in contemporary expressions: I listened to Christine Anu CDs; I went to watch Aboriginal band Stiff Gins perform; I attended the annual Yabun event; and my heart would sing every time I saw Deborah Mailman or Aaron Pedersen or Rachael Maza on the television.

Then I found fashion. I loved being able to wear something proudly that said a little bit about me and where I came from. When I was young, I started noticing textile prints featuring Aboriginal art around the place. I would usually attend the annual Yabun Festival and see stalls of t-shirts with the flag proudly displayed, or jewellery with emu feathers and shells. It was something I