Maljah Cathy Snow - BARRLIN (Wet ground)
CIAF City-Wide Program | Cairns Art Gallery | FREE
28 Jun – 14 Sep 2025
Open Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10am-2pm
Free entry | No bookings required
As her art evolves, Maljah continues to share her people’s culture and stories by extending her practice in new mediums. Her recent textile project, generously supported through the Double R Arts Foundation was realised in collaboration with textile designer Bobbie Ruben and is based on the translation of her signature motifs of flora such as waterlilies and seedpods, from paintings into designs on linen.
Maljah was born into the Gkuathaarn clan in Normanton, in the Gulf of Carpentaria. She spent her childhood on Magowra Station, on her mother’s Country. The traditional name, Maljah, means lightning and comes from her grandmother’s dreaming. The meaning of her grandfather’s name – floodwaters – inspired Maljah to create artworks about water themes.
Maljah’s cultural knowledge of the life-cycles she observes, those of her Country’s creatures and plants, imbues these textiles with a traditional story-telling intent, yet freshly expressed.
Image (top):
Maljah Cathy SNOW
Waterlilies I 2024
digital print on linen from original artwork
Courtesy of the Artist. Commissioned by Cairns Art Gallery, 2025
Maljah Cathy Snow, BARRLIN - Wet Ground is supported by the Double R Arts Foundation.
