Walawuru is my final graduate project as part of my Textiles Design degree at RMIT. Throughout my past semesters, I have been exploring storytelling in my textiles, and really diving into personal memories and history. I am creating a cloak outcome that is inspired by the traditional practice of Possum Skin Cloaks. This cloak is going to tell my personal story about connection, family, land, memories, nostalgia and dreaming. The outcome will consist of 2 seperate cloaks. The techniques I am exploring have been natural dyeing, specifically rust dyeing to get rich orange colours resembling the beautiful Australian soil and dirt.

Digital printing has been my main exploration area. Being able to print my family photos, as well as clips of my writing, has been really rewarding and emotional for me. I am also exploring digital printing in the form of writing. In summary, creating these 2 cloaks has thus far been an exploration into my own self and memories... but also a physical exploration of materials and techniques. I hope my story and outcome can have an emotional reaction to other viewers, as it has been for me.

Artist Bio:

My name is Lucinda Johnson-Cornes and I am a Designer! My discipline is quite wide, my main practice and love is Textiles… but I also have Graphic Design certification which is fun. I would describe my practice as sentimental, spiritual, a way of storytelling and organic. I am a proud Aboriginal woman, with Pitjantjatjara descent. I describe my connection to culture, land and spirit as being a constant humming in my chest… This is the best way I can try to verbalize what my personal culture makes me feel. I spend my time in the mountains and bush of the Macedon Ranges where I’ve lived almost my entire life. You’ll likely find me either reading or writing if you were to come looking.

Textiles for me is an opportunity to tell stories and to understand myself and the world around me. My ultimate goal is to tell my personal stories in hope that they can inspire others to connect with their own histories. Working with my hands helps me to be quiet and to let the silence speak to me, and I believe this is why I was guided on my path to discover Textile Design. I’d love to create a community of beings looking to re-connect to their heritage through storytelling, and I hope to inspire by showing my story. At this stage of my practice, I am really enjoying combining my writing onto physical fabric, then manipulating the fabric whether that be through natural dyeing techniques or other digital processes such as using embroidery machines.