Recently I had the pleasure of undertaking a commercial shoot for Ankalia – and Australian Owned and Operated business who proudly design, weave, and hand finish their products locally. Alexandra and Kellie are a power team who bring their unique products to a socially conscious, fashion aware, attachment parenting, consumer.
Ankalia’s latest wrap design featured in this session was created and modelled by Elizabeth Close, and Australian Indigenous Artist. Her daughter is the beautiful model accompanying her in this stunning wrap. You can view more of Elizabeth’s work here: Elizabeth Close – Aboriginal Artist
Ankalia Nganana || FUSION Nganana – “all of us” (pronounced NUN-nun-nah – in Pitjantjatjara words, the emphasis is on the first syllable) Aboriginal Australia is made up of over 500 Language Groups – we are far from one homogenous group! We don’t have tribes (the word tribe has specific anthropological connotations – namely having a ‘Cheiftan’ – think Native American) rather, we have Countries. I am a Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara woman from the APY lands in Central Australia. These two language groups together collectively refer to ourselves as ‘Anangu’ – the P/Y word for ‘people’. These two languages are largely the same. This design reflects and celebrates the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their countries. It reflects the rich tapestry which is Indigenous Australia. These language groups are all so different; all with their own history, language, art, dance, song, dreaming, stories and law. However, we come together and stand together as one. As much as we are different, in many more ways we are the same. As much as single countries we are beautiful, collectively – we are breathtaking. ‘Nganana’ is a Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara word that means “all of us”. This word perfectly reflects the artwork.
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