Grace Brown / Look to the Stars (GB26)

Grace Brown was born in Victoria and is a very proud Wurundjeri woman. Woiwurrung is her language group and is shared by the other tribal territory groups and clans within the Woiwurrung territory.

Grace has been on a journey to find her heritage on her grandmother’s side and with many years and much research, she now knows where on country she belongs.

She lived in North East Victoria near Healesville for most of her life but now resides on the Gold Coast in Queensland.

With many years of experience with different mediums and subjects, she now has dedicated her life to aboriginal art and her culture to find herself and learn everything about her culture and dreamtime stories from her community and her Elders.

Grace studied an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Arts Course in 2020 – 2021 and hopes to teach her craft, culture and indigenous dreamtime stories to the next generation.

In 2021 The Gold Coast University Hospital commissioned a large painting by Grace for the boardroom at the hospital. (Permission given by  Yugambeh Elders)

Many collectors around the world now hold Grace Brown paintings in their collections. Her latest painting sold to a private collector in New York USA titled “The Heart of Australia’.

Prizes
Finalist in Artlovers Art Prize 2022
Finalist in Bluethumb Art Prize 2021
Shortlist Artlovers Australia 2021 Awards
Shortlist Artlovers Australia 2020 Awards

Exhibitions
2021 Artlovers Australia
Naidoc 2021 – Heal Country, Artlovers Australia
Naidoc 2021 – Heal Country, Gold Coast University Hospital
2020 Artlovers Australia

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were, and continue to be, careful observers of the stars. The stars are the homes of ancestors, animals, plants and spirits. The stars serve as calendars, a law book, and inform all aspects of daily life and culture.

In Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, everything on the land is reflected in the sky. The sky serves as a scientific textbook — a map — that is home to a wealth of knowledge for those who are able to interpret and read the information it holds.

The positions of the sun, moon and stars in relation to the Australian landscape provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples with information to predict changes in the environment in relation to seasons, weather patterns and the behaviour of plants and animals. It is this relationship between the sky, people and country that enables Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to thrive with the Australian landscape, harvesting what they need and ensuring sustainability for future generations.