The Sheri Skele Collection

A proud Bidjara woman and a contemporary Aboriginal artist sharing my culture, experiences and hopes for healing our history through my knowledge and storyworks. I began painting as a way to connect with my culture and quickly realised that it was also an incredibly meditative and spiritual experience for me. When I'm not in the studio painting I'm usually wrangling my two daughters, Heart and Haven who keep me grounded and very busy.

I call my artworks bigi nagala, which means 'I am dreaming' in Bidjara. Our land spans across South West Queensland and is home to substantial Indigenous cultural heritage, Indigenous healing places, undisturbed natural bushlands, lagoos, wildlife and ancient waterways. This is the place where the Rainbow Serpent, Mundagudda, began its movement through the landscape and formed the waterways including the sandstone gorge itself.

I feel a deep connection to my Aboriginal heritage, the earth, country and spirit, and feel privileged to be able to share my stories and culture with you through my artwork.

One of my greatest adventures saw me move to the Northern Territory to a small town called Nhulunbuy. I quickly landed a great opportunity working at Dhimurru (an incorporated Aboriginal organisation established by Yolŋu land-owners in Northeast Arnhem Land). At Dhimurru our primary function was to facilitate the protection, conservation and sustainable management of natural and cultural resource values, concentrating on areas which are subject to recreational use. I learnt many valuable lessons at Dhimurru and felt at home surrounded by my aunties and uncles who shared many stories with me and began teaching me how to live off country. The spark to learn more about my heritage and culture had been lit.