I am Leah. I am an Aboriginal woman born in Canberra, ACT. My mob are Kamilaroi from my Grandmothers country in the Gunnedah region. I am a self-taught Contemporary Aboriginal Artist and began painting at a very young age. I have been painting in a professional capacity for over 7 years.

"Art is such an important platform to share my culture with the wider community. My art is like a 'visual yarn', people really connect with the stories and meaning behind the work".

A great deal of my artistic vision and inspiration comes from the changing landscapes in my home town, on country and from my journeys to ocean country and beyond. I use layers of fine dotting, line work, colour gradients, Aboriginal symbolism and my signature style of 'cracked earth' landscape throughout my paintings. Kamilaroi country is often dry and cracked, but rich and deep in history, culture and story as represented by the space in between the cracked earth. I pay great attention to detail, natural patterns, light, shade and texture in the landscape.

My paintings often work between two perspectives; landscape and birds-eye view. Through a birds-eye view, I generally map the journeys in which I take, along with my ancestral and cultural ties. As I learn more about my culture and discover my ancestors’ footprints in the landscape, I feel the urge to paint my story, my sense of place.

Oceans Edge represents the flow and relationship between land and ocean from an aerial perspective. There is a lot happening in our lives, we sometimes forget to slow down and we lose the flow. Relating the constant tide coming in and out and the untiring flush of waves to the ups and downs in our lives puts things in perspective. Looking out to the ocean reminds me to take a breath, take a step back, ground my feet in the Earth, focus on family and what is important right now, and find a better flow to the busyness of life. The first rush of salt water over my feet as I step in to the ocean is a feeling of freedom.