Well-known for its support of the Indigenous community, Koskela is celebrating 15 years of successful collaborations with First Nations artists.
Since 2009, Koskela’s collections of pendant lighting, floor lamps and wall lights have been showcasing the intricacy and diversity of Indigenous weavings, celebrating a flourishing cultural practice within Australia.
Co-founder Sasha Titchkosky realised her vision for Koskela by using design as a vessel for social change and worked with the Yolngu weavers of Elcho Island Arts to unveil its inaugural woven light collection, Yuta Badayala (in a new light).
“At the time, it felt pretty groundbreaking,” she says.
“No one that we knew of was working in collaboration with First Nations artists to design interior products and use this as a way of providing an income independent of government welfare.”
The lighting collection celebrates the evolution of Indigenous fibre arts in Australia, providing a platform for weavers to earn income and introducing unique artistic products into modern interiors.
Each piece is handwoven with locally sourced materials, reflecting a profound connection to the land and traditional techniques. The collection also includes a new range of unique floor lamps, an original Koskela design with First Nations woven pendants, set on a saltbush grey powder-coated base.
Koskela designs the frames but doesn’t interfere in the artists’ interpretation of them, adds Titchkosky.
“The First Nations weavers harvest pandanus and kurrajong fibre, which are dried and dyed to create the woven materials. Koskela’s frames become the weavers’ canvases and each one is uniquely interpreted. When they arrive back in Sydney, they are wired as pendants and available for Koskela customers to purchase in store or online.”
Koskela is strongly committed to nurturing and supporting the artistic development as it continues its social impact collaboration with 14 Indigenous art centres and counting.
One per cent of all Koskela product sales go towards the realisation of their projects and collaborations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art centres and artists. As of February 2024, Koskela has returned $1,605,518 to 72 First Nations artists and art centre partners.
“Showcasing the creativity, storytelling and cultural practices of these artists and supporting their self-determination has been a strong commitment of Koskela’s ever since we started.”
