Woven Together: Undivided We Rise
18 May – 22 August 2026
Court House Building | 38 Abbott St, Gimuy/Cairns City, QLD 4870
Woven Together: Undivided We Rise is a powerful celebration of resilience, community, and cultural continuity. Featuring artists Kim Ah Sam, Clare Jaque Vasquez, Jaeda Lenoy, Erica Muriata, Aunty Rosalind Sailor and Michona Warria, and curated by Gangulu woman Sabrina-Rose Toby, this exhibition honours the trust of the six exhibiting artists, who share their stories through the transformative practice of weaving. Bringing together individual weavings alongside a collaborative woven installation, each fibre is a vessel of memory, healing, and strength.
Exhibiting artist and Elder Aunty Rosalind Sailor said that the works echo women’s traditions like those from her Yalanji cultural practice, ‘carrying burdens in their baskets until they are taken upstream and renewed by cleansing in the water.’
Through collaborative spirit and deep cultural knowledge, these works weave together past and present, pain and hope.
Commissioned by Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts in partnership with the North Australian Festival of Arts, supporting the voices of the curator and artists, this is exhibition collectively offers a space where legacy, connection, and future vision are intricately interlaced.
Curated by Sabrina-Rose Toby
OPENING HOURS:
Mon-Fri // 9.30am – 5pm
Sat // 10am – 5pm
Sun // Closed
For the CIAF weekend (9-12 July), all three Cairns Art Gallery buildings will be open 9am - 5pm.
Woven Together: Undivided We Rise is an Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts (Umbrella) exhibition. It was commissioned by Umbrella in partnership with the North Australian Festival of Arts (NAFA). Umbrella and NAFA are thankful for the support of Vivien Anderson Gallery representing Clare Jaque Vasquez, Kim Ah Sam and Erica Muriata, and Girringun Aboriginal Art Centre also representing Erica Muriata.
Image: Michona Warria (Kuku-Yalanji, Waanji, Kalkadoon and Torres Strait Island (Mabuiag Island) b.1998) Unceded 2025, Raffia, emu feathers and beads. 58 x 48 x 2cm. Private Collection. Photographer: Amanda Galea.
