Louise Robertson Australian, Walpiri, b. 1984

Louise was born in 1984. She is a Warlpiri woman who grew up in Yuendumu, west of Alice Springs with her grandma. She loved living there as a child and going on bush trips with her grandma: hearing stories about country and collecting bush food. When Louise was 8 years old, she moved to Alice Springs to live with her mother. Now Robertson lives here with her husband and her children.

Robertson said she came into the Yarrenyty Arltere art room one day to see what her mother-in-law, Dulcie Sharpe and all the other ladies were doing. She said she wanted to join in because she liked the way everyone was sharing and helping each other, not only in their sewing but in their lives too. At first, she was nervous, but then Dulcie taught her how to sew, and everyone encouraged her. She wants people to feel happy when they look at her work, like she feels happy when she makes it.

Robertsons’ work is breathtakingly intricate in stitching, colour and subject matter. The forms that she stitches onto and the marks she makes are shaped by the stories she believes are important to share, so as she says “Aboriginal people can be seen by other people to have good thoughts and good culture. So, people can see that Aboriginal people are really strong and clever. And so, my kids can be proud of me”.

Robertson has been a finalist in the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, the National Indigenous Fashion Awards. Her work is held in the National Gallery of Australia.