David Jones has announced Indigenous artist and designer, Lyn-Al Young as the recipient of a newly created role, the David Jones Emerging Designer. In celebration of NAIDOC week, David Jones has launched an exclusive range of limited edition scarves and wraps, individually hand painted by Lyn-Al Young, which are available at Elizabeth Street and Bourke Street Mall stores.
Lyn-Al Young is an Australian Indigenous fashion designer and artist who lives in Melbourne. She has emerged from a family of artists, entrepreneurs and strong Indigenous leaders who have helped create social change in Australia. Each piece of wearable art is created from merino wool and silk, with a unique story relating to spirituality, guidance, well-being and protection. The pieces are designed to be wrapped and worn in a range of ways to inspire protection and empowerment.
The exclusive NAIDOC collection is titled, ‘ngu-ng-ga-dhaany’ meaning carrier in Wiradjuri language.
Describing the inspiration behind the collection Lyn-Al said, “I want to acknowledge, celebrate and bring honour to all women. Elders and ancestors have carried their children, cultural knowledge, dreaming stories, history and connection to country, family and community. The textures in this collection represent the basket weaving to symbolise our connections to one another. The curvy lines represent the coolamon, which were traditionally used by our ancestors to carry babies and cart our food and water. The colours and landscape markings are symbolic of the nurturing and healing spirit that is deep within the fabric of all women.”
NAIDOC week (National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee) runs each year in Australia from the first Sunday in July to the following Sunday and celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The 2018 week’s theme Because of Her, We Can, is focused on celebrating the significant roles Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women have played and continue to play at community, local, state and national levels.
The David Jones Emerging Designer is a new initiative awarded to an Australian creative in the early stages of their design career, with the objective to nurture and support their growth across both business and creative aspects. The designer is provided with business support and the opportunity to work with the David Jones merchandise and marketing teams to continue to develop their brand.
In her role as David Jones Emerging Designer, Lyn-Al Young will receive support from David Jones to continue to develop her brand and Fasheaming (Fashion-Dreaming) project, which helps inspire youths to realise their dreams.
Speaking of her new role Lyn-Al said, “I am honoured to partner with David Jones on my journey and create this exclusive NAIDOC collection. To be announced as the David Jones Emerging Designer is a dream come true, I hope to use my art and Fasheaming project to inspire other youths to believe in their dreams.”
David Jones is committed to collaborating and developing initiatives that as part of our reconciliation journey, enable us to connect with the talent in the communities in which we operate.
David Jones Chief Executive Officer, David Thomas said, “We are proud to announce Lyn-Al Young as our David Jones Emerging Designer, her incredible talent combined with her passion and determination is inspiring. We are committed to not only nurturing our house brands, but identifying young creatives within the Australian fashion industry and supporting them as they bring their vision to life. We are particularly pleased that this announcement could coincide with NAIDOC week, as the Lyn-Al brand is deeply immersed in traditional culture and rich in values that we share at David Jones.”
The NAIDOC week pop-up will run from 7 July until 22 July 2018 (NAIDOC week runs from 8-15 July 2018) at David Jones Elizabeth Street and Bourke Street Mall stores, with limited edition collection available in both Merino wool and silk, ranging from $190 – $450.
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