The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (Telstra NATSIAA) are Australia’s longest-running and the most prestigious Indigenous art awards. They bring together are wide array of people with varying types of art. Here, three of this years finalist’s that give away some weird habits, where they want their art to hang and their biggest muses…
LEAH BRADY
AGE: 58
HOME: Adelaide
GENRE: Landscape
MATERIALS: Acrylic on linen
INSPIRATION: The incredible landscape and country of the APY (Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara) lands. We (Anangu) are tied to this country. We love it and take care of it; that’s our responsibility and our joy.
ART HERO: My brother, Sammy Lyons. Sammy and I are in the NATSIA Awards together for the very first time this year.
WORDS TO LIVE BY: I always say to my kids, “Look after each other. Be straight in the way you talk and think about the world. Share and be generous. Work hard. Enjoy your life. Have fun.”
STUDIO SOUNDTRACK: Anything by Dolly Parton.
PET HATE: I don’t like it when people make promises and then walk away. We experience this quite a bit in Aboriginal communities – government promises.
SPIRIT ANIMAL: An eagle, so I could fly around the country and keep an eye on my family.
JENNA LEE
AGE: 27
HOME: I have a quite a few homes. My life is in Brisbane where I live and work; my community is in Darwin on Larrakia Land; and finally Canberra, where my mum and dad live. No matter where they move, their place is always my home.
GENRE: Conceptual art, predominantly paper-based sculpture, works on paper and multimedia installation.
MATERIALS: Paper is my core medium, specifically second-hand books, which I transform into new forms through a process of analysis, deconstruction and reconstruction.
INSPIRATION: The objects of my ancestors are a huge inspiration for me. I am also a huge fan of fantasy, science fiction, comics and manga. ART HERO: Aunty Lola Greeno. She was the first artist to make me cry through the power of her work.
IF YOU COULD HAVE DINNER WITH ANYBODY FROM HISTORY, WHO WOULD IT BE? David Attenborough – I just want to thank him for inspiring my passion and curiosity for the world around us.
STUDIO SOUNDTRACK: “Pukulpa” by Electric Fields.
PET HATE: People who are rude to service staff.
SPIRIT ANIMAL: A powerful owl.
KRYSTAL HURST
AGE: 32
HOME: Taree, on NSW’s Mid North Coast. Currently living on Ngunnawal Country in the ACT.
GENRE: Aboriginal jewellery/adornment.
MATERIALS: A whole variety – seashells, emu feathers, echidna quills, raffia, native seeds, bamboo wood.
INSPIRATION: My identity as a Worimi woman, memories, experiences and cultural stories.
ART HERO: My dad; he taught me how to paint and draw.
WORDS TO LIVE BY: Speak and live your truth.
FAVOURITE INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT: Seed Mob – Indigenous Youth Climate Network (@seedmob). They are doing amazing work to protect [the] country.
STUDIO SOUNDTRACK: I love listening to the podcast Wild Black Women hosted by Chelsea Bond and Angelina Hurley.
PET HATE: Cultural appropriation.
SPIRIT ANIMAL: Gurparr – a dolphin
This article originally appeared the July issue of marie claire – Out Now
