YOU still have a week or so to get along to Megalo’s gallery in Watson to see Australian flora and fauna screenprinted textiles designed and printed by Ceretha Skinner. 

She views her art as a form of “medicine” and has, in this exhibition, come a great distance toward achieving a long-held dream to produce fabric designs that relate to her culture.

It is the childhood environment of northern NSW and the memory of rivers, creeks, fishing and plants, that has most influenced her art, but the road to Megalo was a rocky one.

On first arriving in Canberra around 13 years ago, Skinner visited the facility, but was at the time suffering from depression and anxiety, so did not return.

After her daughter grew up, and her mother passed away, Skinner consulted a case manager at Job Network, who uncovered her personal passion for “art, printing and textiles”.

That case manager rang Megalo and in late 2009 she re-visited the Watson studio, and, encouraged by the facility’s artistic director, Alison Alder, entered into a mentorship during 2010 that was to give her the opportunity to work alongside some of the best textile artists in both Canberra and Australia, gathering skills, working professionally and gaining an understanding that she is not alone in her dedication to her craft.

“The no-good things that happened to me have pushed me into art – good things can happen and you can build yourself up to be a better role model for your people,” she says.

The work in this exhibition features motifs relating to animals, plants and her Indigenous heritage. Developed originally from hand-drawn pen and ink drawings, the repeats create continuous patterns that give the impression that everything in nature is connected.

The results of her hard work, Alder says, show Skinner to be a “printer of stunning textiles.”

Ceretha Skinner, “Australian Flora And Fauna,” at Megalo Print Studio + Gallery, 49 Phillip Ave Watson, until October 13.