SDA had the pleasure of interviewing these ladies from Pandanah regarding their recent achievements and can I just say it is SPECTACULAR.
1. Tell us a little about
yourself.
CARA: Originally
from Maui, Hawaii
I moved
to Australia
to pursue
work opportunities,
travel
and
study. I’ve
called
the
eastern
suburbs
of Sydney home
since 2004. My work is
inspired by
nature, our
environments,
sustainability,
travel
and
culture, the sea. Having completed
a Bachelors of
Arts
and
Sciences
(University of
Colorado,
Boulder), Masters of
Art
(CoFA;
UNSW), Graphic Design cert
IV (Billy Blue
College
of Design, NSW)
and
most
recently,
Rachel Taylors’ ABSPD my
work has
evolved to
cover
a broad spectrum of
Oil Painting, Illustration,
Digital
and
Mixed Medias, Surface and Textile Design.
NICOLE: My
heritage
is Yamatji
Wajarri,
English & Dutch, with
over
a decade of trans-
disciplinary industry
experience (artist & designer). I aim to
empower
Aboriginal culture through art and design
by embedding philosophies
of sustainability, innovation
and
collaboration
into
my practice. I received a scholarship
to study
Interior design
(KVB College), Cert 4 Fine
Arts
(Great
Lakes TAFE),
Design
Anthropology
(Swinburne) & looking
forward
to Residency
at CoFA; UNSW in 2015.
2. How
did the
Pandanah Collaborative
come
together?
CARA: Over the years, Nicole and I have
shared
studio
spaces,
adventures
up and down the East Coast,
exhibitions
and
have pushed
each
other creatively. Pandanah
was bound to
happen.
It just took
10 years
of friendship and a couple of
wines
over
a New
Years
Eve
bonfire to
get things started.
NICOLE: My company
Black and White
Creative creates opportunities
for cultural
collaboration
and
more specifically, aims
to raise
awareness around the significance of our
indigenous
past,
its relevance to
our present
and
to ensure
it has
a place
in our future.
It is
the
thread that
brings these
opportunities together and weaves them into our
Australian
culture. Pandanah
is an
extension of
this.
We wanted
Pandanah to
be a place where we
could
tell our
stories
of global
culture, seek
creative collaborations,
bring together our
skills and experiences
through
art
and
design.
3. How
did the
gum nut collection evolve?
NICOLE: During
a trip back to
country
last
year,
I was fascinated
with the flora in particular
the
large gum nuts. I went about
collecting
these and found so
much
inspiration
from the shape
and
form.
I spoke
with Cara and she
reminisced of
growing
up with
Eucalyptus in Hawaii
and
so our
first collection had
a theme.
We have both
developed
skills in numerous
creative disciplines
within our
art
and
design practices...Pandanah
was a great
way to explore
mutual inspirations
collectively. We
started
out with a range of
dilly
bags,
experimenting
with various eco
friendly materials and a range of
illustrations...
CARA: Early this year, we
were
selected
from a national call
out to showcase our
range
at the first ever
Australian
Indigenous
Fashion Week.
We put our heads down and dove into the experience head first and
our little line of
bags
grew into a complete range of
lifestyle fashion garments for
the
runway (we
also participated
in the
AIFW trade show). We both
felt strongly
in using sustainable
materials
like
kangaroo leather,
hemp, organic
cottons
and
silk, linen.
We wanted our
prints to
bring these
two
beautiful cultures together... quintessential Australian bush crossed with
bright
Pacific themes.
4. What
is your design
process
when
creating a new range?
NICOLE: I enjoy
collaborating
with people and bouncing around ideas. Once
we had
decided on the
Gum nut as
our theme,
I went
about photographing the numerous
collected
varieties to use
within our
prints. Then I thought
about the philosophy and lifestyle of
Aboriginal people and Pacific islanders
and
expressed this in our
collection
through
the
use
of natural fabrics,
story
telling
and
simplistic
designs.
CARA: We
both love researching an
idea, collecting
samples
from nature,
taking photos, drawing
from life... That initial
process
is really important
to us
both. My
illustrations
are
hand drawn in the studio,
brought into Photoshop
and
Illustrator to
create
vector artworks for
digital
print. While drawing
and
composition
always come first, colour
is a huge part in my
creative process. It is
what brings
an entire collection together...what brings
it to
life.
5. Can
you
explain your manufacturing
process?
NICOLE: We
have been digitally
printing and manufacturing
here
in Sydney. We
initially spent
a few
visits with
the
friendly Think Positive
team choosing fabrics
and
matching
colours. Our
fabrics are digitally
printed using eco
friendly processes
on natural fibres of
Hemp, Linen and Silk.
CARA: The Gum Nut collection came
together
pretty seamlessly and we
were
very
lucky to
be able
to produce our
products here in Sydney. What
an amazing
learning
experience.
Nicole
and I will continue
to explore production
options
both locally
and
also overseas
looking
into
woven fabrics
and
heavier
finishes for interiors and lager
scale
projects. We are in the process of
getting
some samples made
and
are
looking
forward
to a trip to
Indonesia in the new year.
6. Can
you
describe
your
experience with
the
2014 Sydney Design Awards?
CARA: Design 100 is
an international design
award programs
focusing on
the
value
of design in local markets. Sydney featured both
local
and
international design
(50 categories) representing
an annual
snapshot
of design talent
in this
marketplace.
The
Design Awards is a great
way for design professionals
and
the
local
community
to vote
on their favourites and help shape
our creative worlds.
NICOLE: I was
actually
submitting another
work in the Permanent Installation category (Finalist;
see
Mana Ngurang, blackandwhite
creative) when I noticed the Textile and Surface Design category,
I called Cara and we
got
working on
our submission
straight away.
We were very
excited
at the awards ceremony when Pandanah
was announced as
the
winner. It
goes
to show if you keep your eyes peeled within
your
industry - you never
know what
opportunities might pop up.
7. Do you have
any
tips
for someone
new
to the surface design
industry on
how
to get
started
and/
or move
forward?
CARA: Just jump in. It’s not going
to happen overnight
so there
is room
to adjust as
you
go.
Take your time.
Research and seek
opportunities in your industry. Half of
it is
getting
out there and having people hear
about what
you
do. Enter competitions,
send
off
portfolios, reach
out to professionals, you never
know what
doors might open. And
of course make
as much art as
you
can.
NICOLE: Be
organised
with your time.
Make goals
and
stick to
time
lines. Make time for
inspiration
if you
are
solo, go
out and get involved
with like minded individuals.
8. Who
are
your
mentors and/ or
inspirations?
CARA: My
oldest
mentor
and
dear
friend Avi Kiriaty
is a huge inspiration…I
spent most of
my teen years in his
studio, watching
him paint the
most
beautiful Polynesian themed paintings.
I love
what he
is doing with the Kahala Aloha
shirt
line and his block
prints. I am
drawn
to surface designers
like
Marimekko
and
Mara
Hoffman...the whimsical,
painterly
designs of Carrie Jardine and old
Hawaiian classics
like
Alfred
Shaheen.
NICOLE: I have
so many
inspirations, but
nature
and
the
environment
would be
my first point of
call for almost
everything.
As an
exhibiting member
of Boomalli
Aboriginal Arts
Co-op I continually
find inspiration from
other artists, in particular
Bronwyn
Bancroft. I
also love vibrant
things
and
Australiana. Jenny Kee is
one
of my
favourite
textile
artists.
9. What’s next?
NICOLE: We
have definitely learnt
a lot during this year; with
the
attitude
of never
turning down a good opportunity
we have
seen
some great success within
our first year. I’m very lucky
to have
found
a great
partner to
work with
and
we very much complement
each
other so
its just up and up
from here.
From
our hard work
and
hands on
experience we
have decided the future
direction for
Pandanah is
as a Surface design studio – offering services for
any
surface, with
our experience ranging from
Interiors,
Art,
Design
& Fashion. We believe we
can
develop
bespoke and unique
design that suit any application
and
we are
openly looking for
future collaborators.
We also look forward to
offering limited
run lifestyle
products, so
stay tuned
to Pandanah.
CARA: It’s so
exciting
to be
able to work
along side someone who excites
you
and
pushes
you
to do your best.
Its been such
fun. While we
continue
to work
on our
product line, we
look
forward
to creative
projects ahead. Look for
us at
Fernabulus
(an event by
Fern
Events) Fashion
show, a platform for
multicultural
emerging
designers to network,
connect
and
expand business relationships
within the design
industry.
A dream project
would be
to collaborate
with a gallery or
other creative
space
for an interiors
project. We want to
see
our designs printed large
scale, rugs
and
furnishings…. filling spaces and reaching different audiences. We can’t wait
to share
it with
you
all.
__________________________________________________________________________________
SDA is so proud of you.
You can reach out to Pandanah via the following links:
