Country to Couture and National Indigenous Fashion Awards show off Territory Talent
National Indigenous Fashion Awards and a runway like no other. See all the clothes, winners and desingers in our 200+ picture gallery.
Northern Territory
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DARWIN has come alive as artists, designers and muscians converge to celebrate the oldest living culture.
Darwin Aboriginal Arts Fair chief executive Clare Summers said it was incredible for the art world to again come together after they had all been physically isolated due to Covid restrictions for more than two years.
“It’s amazing to be back here and being able to celebrate together and also get behind all these amazing communities because for art centers, it’s one of they’re only sources of income that comes externally into the community,” she said.
“It is a true economy, and we need to build it because the art centers are also cultural places, in that they are the lifeblood, the beating heart, I like to call call them of our communities and they keep culture strong.”
On Tuesday night 17 artists strutted the runway across two incredible catwalk shows for the fourth Country to Couture. It was a “runway show like no other,” said National Indigenous Fashion Award (NIFA) Desinger winner Denni Francisco from Ngali.
“I first came to Country to Couture four years ago, and just seeing the advancement in the last four years is just so incredibly exciting. It’s a runway, Country to Couture like no other.”
Francisco took out the top award for the second year in a row after an incredibly emotional night.
“What we can do with fashion is actually create pathways for others to follow,” she said.
“It actually shines the light on you know, 65,000 years or more of incredible creativity. And not only are we there in the fashion space but we really belong in the fashion space,” she said.
Her collection adorned the runway at Country to Couture on the Tuesday night before she won the top award the following night at the NIFAs. Her win will mean Australians will again be treated to a one off collobaration with fashion giant Country Road.
On the back of her 2021 win, she acknowledged the incredible collaborations with Country Road over the past 12 months.
“I’d also too like to thank Country Road for the last 12 months you know, just been an amazing organisation to work with and and truly, I feel completely culturally safe in this space,” she said.
“I think that that is actually really important. I think that we always need to feel you know, that our nation, our culture, everything that we’re about is protected and acknowledged and honored.”
She concluded with how humbled she was to be on Larrakia land.
“What an amazing night and I feel incredibly humbled to be on this place. Right now with the incredible people that came before me.”
NIFA’s Traditonal Adornment Award winner Esther Yarllarlla from Bábbarra Women’s Centre
spoke of how when she was little her family had no clothes and so they made them from traditional weaving methods found across Arnhem Land.
“My name is Esther,” she told the crowd.
“And now (I) was learning from my mother. She was teaching me and in my brain was showing me…and the basket and I was learning all the way…I was a little girl…and I’m still making this from long time ago.”
The crowd sat in awe as each winner shared personal accounts of their journey to making and designing but a consistent theme was the hope these brands bring future generations.
Business Achievement winner and Closing the Gaps cofounder Laura Thompson spoke about how a T-shirt that began as a public health promotion shirt has invited national unity.
“We started selling merchandise. It really did bring a non Indigenous audience into the brand that would essentially help fund the Aboriginal health programs we wanted to deliver in community,” she said.
“We never really thought that we’d get there so to be where we are today with Clothing the Gaps and Clothing the Gaps foundation was a dream.”
The social enterprise has high hopes, outside of Thompson’s personal dreams to be on playschool, to collaborate with filmmakers on the Free the Flag story.
“Its a really important story and one no one has been couragous enough to tell yet, but thats going to change,” she said through a smile.
Clothing the Gaps Thompson is not just a fashion brand, but it is removing the burden on Aboriginal people by creating visible allyship.
“We’re sharing the load, we’re sharing the struggle by saying, ‘Hey, you can have that conversation for us and you can learn more,’ and our T-shirts are a prompt to make sure that we provide education on our resource to support that.”
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SEE THE WINNERS:
Traditional Adornment Award: Esther Yarllarlla, Bábbarra Women’s Centre
Community Collaboration Award: Mimili Maku Arts, Linda Puna x Unreal Fur
Textile Design Award: Philomena Yeatman, Yarrabah Arts & Cultural Precinct
Wearable Art Award: Lillardia Briggs-Houston, Ngarru Miimi
Fashion Designer Award: Denni Francisco, Ngali
Business Achievement Award: Laura Thompson, Clothing The Gaps
Highly Commended: Bábbarra Women’s Centre, Bábbarra Designs, Nominee for the Business Achievement Award
SEE THE PICS FROM NIFA:
COUNTRY TO COUTURE - SHOW 2:
Country to Couture - Show 2
Originally published as Country to Couture and National Indigenous Fashion Awards show off Territory Talent
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