Meet the Kaantju woman behind Mecca Cosmetica's new holiday campaign

First Nations artist Naomi Hobson will have her artwork adorn one of the biggest beauty campaigns in the country.

Naomi hobson indigenous first nations mecca cosmetics

Kaantju woman Naomi Hobson has found success with her brilliant paintings. Now her artwork will adorn one of the biggest make-up campaigns in the country. Source: Supplied

Naomi Hobson first exhibited her creations just eight years ago, when she was 34.

But her history as an artist goes back much further than that.

"I've always been an artist, it's not something I became," she told NITV News.

"Creating things is something I've always done, and never stopped really. That moment I picked up a paintbrush, I never seem to have put it down."

Hobson grew up on Kaantju Country, in Far North Queensland. In hindsight, she now recognises the acute material disadvantage her family existed in. But reminiscing about walks on Country with her grandparents, she has said she felt rich.
Naomi hobson indigenous first nations mecca cosmetics
Being on Country has always inspired Naomi Hobson's art practice. Source: Supplied
"That's why my colours are so bright," she says of her paintings.

"It's so important to my life here... my landscape, it's bursting with life."

Her painted works are arresting, to say the least. Often depicted on vast canvasses, they are a complex interplay of colour and shapes, full of fine detail. She says the landscape around hometown Coen inspires her.

"When I'm in my landscape, I like to acknowledge the little things, the detailed things, the unseen things in my environment.

"All of my paintings reflect... places and people that I have connections to. It's about connections that inspire me to appreciate life."
Naomi hobson indigenous first nations mecca cosmetics
"The quality of my colours... represent life." Source: Supplied
The Southern Kaantju and Umpila woman has taken those inspirations and found success. Her works already hang in the National Gallery of Victoria. Now, her distinctive art will feature on one of the country's biggest make-up brands, Mecca.

"Colours are important to me. It's very bright here in Cape York. The light, the environment, everything is in focus," she says.

"It's about the colour of life that comes through in this collaboration with Mecca. It's about accepting who you are... that's what I'm all about, is being honest and true to yourself."

Mecca, an Australian company, has more than 100 stores, and turned revenue above half a billion in 2019. They are a central player in the beauty industry in this country.

For Hobson, it's an exciting opportunity to bring her art, and her vision of beauty, to a huge audience.
Naomi hobson indigenous first nations mecca cosmetics
Hobson's collaboration with Mecca Cosmetics. Source: Supplied
"The quality of my colours and shape-forms are a strong point for me. They represent life.

"Being grounded in my culture, and living on my land, means it's only natural for me to reflect this in so many ways through my art."

"I love my Country. And that's what my painting represents. Love for my Country, showing it off, through my shapes and lines and colours.

"Colours for me are about being proud. The shapes are about being strong. The lines are about my journey through my landscape, and I'm taking you with me."
Naomi hobson indigenous first nations mecca cosmetics
"Connection has always inspired me." Source: Supplied
Country is a theme Hobson returns to time and again. Beauty, light and colour, inspiration and drive; it all starts from Country. She has a simple explanation for the primacy of her land in her work.

"Me being on my Country means a healthy life for me. A healthy life is a healthy Country. People being on Country, that's what my art is all about.

"We are a landscape. We are part of this environment. It is who we are. It is who I am.

"It's my culture."

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3 min read
Published 11 November 2021 9:09am
Updated 11 November 2021 11:32am
By Dan Butler
Source: NITV News


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