Meet the Artist behind our limited edition Indigenous Collection — Brolga
Bobbi is a Ngarluma, Karriyarra (Pilbara) Yawuru, Nyulnyul (Kimberley) woman. She was born in and grew up in Port Hedland. Port Hedland is a coastal mining town, renowned for the giant bulk carrier ships, iron ore mining and the salt pile, red dirt and ocean living.
Growing up in Port Hedland has inspired her artwork and photography in so many ways. Bobbi’s passion and love for country inspires her creative talents and interests — a photographer by day and painter by night.
Gifted with four amazing boys who call her mama and they are her absolute inspiration. With strong family connections to land, people and health are embedded in her work. She envisages that art is healing and can be conceptualised in health and community programmes.
Bobbi’s connections to culture and family and friends have inspired her to use natural environment to create art in photography and painting. Newborn and maternity natural light compositions are influenced by environment materials and textures to create family masterpieces which families see as heirlooms to be passed down to generations.
Bobbi’s services include event and commercial photography in Port Hedland, Aboriginal art and fine art paintings, family and baby photography as well as illustration and graphic design. She also runs photography and art workshops teaching children and adults and has worked with a number of schools and programs. In 2008 Bobbi emerged as a photographer and established a self-taught photography business.
Over ten years of successful business entrepreneurship has seen her photography business emerge to become well known, published and reviewed Statewide, Nationally and Internationally.
Feature articles have described her work as groundbreaking, revolutionary and artistic. Bobbi likes to draw the natural ability and instincts and strengths from her grassroots Aboriginal community.
Her maternal grandmother's personal story of her Stolen Generations experience underlies her love for maternal and country and her grandfather's story of social activism and fight for country gives her determination and pride. She is passionate about Birthing on Country and seeks healing of intergenerational trauma as a result of colonisation.
Bobbi Lockyer and the meaning of the brolga
As Bobbi explains, “The painting was inspired by strong women.”
“In our culture’s Dreaming about Brolga story, Brolga was a beautiful girl obsessed with dancing. Dancing was her only love and nothing distracted her.”
“I like to think of Brolga as a headstrong woman, passionate and determined, going for her dreams. This is why I chose to paint brolga feathers for this design, to symbolise women with our strengths, passions and show that we are going for our dreams” Bobbi shares.
Fans of the range include sportswoman Nova Peris, comedian Steph Tisdell and musician BARKAA. These are just some of the inspiring women who are looking forward to wearing the limited-edition pieces.
Highlighting the importance of Australia’s Indigenous history
It is such an honour to be able to collaborate with Bobbi. According to our co-founder Nadia Tucker, “Our purpose is to celebrate all women - to inspire them to live their best life and this collaboration is a crucial part of that, helping to amplify the voices and showcasing the art of our first nation’s women.”
This new activewear range reflects our wider purpose; to continue to build a community of positive, kind and strong women. As co-founder Stevie Angel explains, “We believe in building each other up and cheering each other on.”
In conjunction with the launch of our new range, Active Truth is now offering customers the opportunity to include their traditional place names when entering their address through the ordering process. We are proud to be one of the first companies to include this in their checkout options.
Meet Bobbi and take a look behind the scenes of the Brolga range fashion shoot here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGQs8z1gYpc
https://www.instagram.com/bobbilockyer/
https://www.bobbilockyer.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AboriginalArtistAustralia
And check out the range! We are so proud to share it and can’t wait to hear your feedback.
