Continuing its mission to bridge the gap between aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists and the contemporary design works, Koskela is launching a fabrics collection designed by First Nations artists from across Australia.
The purpose-led lifestyle brand has worked together with five female artists including Penny Evans, Jacinta Lorenzo, Raylene Miller, Lucy Simpson, Regina Wilson and members of art centre Jilamara Arts to design the new fabrics.
Dubbed dali dyalgala, a Darug phrase meaning ‘to embrace’, the collaboration provides new entrepreneurial opportunities and income streams for the featured artists.
“We’re delighted to launch the dali dyalgala range, which has been in the works for almost three years,” Koskela founder, Sasha Titchkosky, explains.
“This phrase beautifully captures the meaning behind this collaboration, a coming together of female artists from across the country, whilst also paying respects and acknowledging our local language. dali dyalgala is a gesture of reconciliation, to embrace one another and work together to make positive change.”
The designs translate multidisciplinary artworks, ranging from weaving, sculpture and painting, into cloths that can be used to transform cushions, chairs, beanbags and more from the Koskela range.
For the launch, Koskela has produced a series of throw cushions using the new designs. The brand licensed the artworks/designs directly from the artists and art centres involved, taking the original works and developing a range of unique colourways for each and worked closely with fabric suppliers Think Positive (Sydney) and Frankie and Swiss (Melbourne) in realising the final cloths.
The collection is available now.
