Intertwined

Artist and designer Grace Lillian Lee interprets the Torres Strait Islander palm-leaf weaving practice, commonly used for basketry, to create objects of contemporary adornment. 

After graduating with honours in fashion design from RMIT in Melbourne, Lee was taught traditional weaving by the renowned artist Uncle Ken Thaiday, from Erub Island (Darnley Island), in Torres Strait. Lee weaves with processed fibres rather than customary natural ones such as coconut leaf, banana fibre or pandanus, and adopts the ’prawn or grasshopper weaving’ technique, a process affectionately coined after the types of animals created for children’s toys.

In her work Intertwined, bands of cotton twill binding ribbon have been densely woven to create an elaborate piece of body sculpture. Playing with form, shape and scale, the neckpiece rests over the wearer’s chest, the soft intricately layered material beautifully guarding the body.

Drawing on her diverse heritage, Lee creates sculptural forms that explore the interaction between adornment and the body across cultures. They also merge traditional and contemporary artistic expressions while dissolving boundaries between art and fashion.

Gloria Strzelecki, Associate Curator of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art