A little chat with our cover artist… charlotte allingham

Hi Charlotte, tell us a bit about yourself. My name is Charlotte, but I’m also known as Coffinbirth. I’m a 28-year-old Wiradjuri, Ngiyampaa woman from Central West New South Wales, but I live in Naarm (Melbourne).

What are your biggest inspirations? There are so many things that inspire me, but one in particular is nature. I always like to include something to do with Country in my work. Tell us a bit about your process. I normally start off with an idea in my head. All of the planning happens inside my head rather than by sketching ideas on paper. Then I get some references and colour ideas together and just smash it out. I like giving the piece the space to find its own way to completion, but when is art ever finished?

What’s the story behind this botanical work? I love our flowers so much; I think it’s special that our flag colours are scattered all over the land, through plants. I always feel weird seeing colonial botanical pieces, so I wanted to create something that I can see us and our land in. Plus, I’m a sucker for flowers. How do you hope people feel when looking at your work? I put a lot of themes and symbols in my work, which mean something to me and my experience, but I like giving people the freedom to find their own meanings. What are your favourite flowers?

I love gum leaves and waratahs because they remind me of home, but I also love nasturtiums because their leaves are circular, and that’s just so cool. Where can we see more of your stuff? Online at charlotteallingham.com and on Instagram at @coffinbirth.