Sonya is an emerging artist who began painting at home in the Burringurrah community, between Carnarvon and Meekatharra, where she grew up and attended School of the Air. She later studied Visual Arts at Carnarvon TAFE and was invited to teach during NAIDOC Week.
Creativity runs in her family—her late father, Ernest Edney, was a dogger and musician, and Sonya also plays instruments. She credits her artistic inspiration to her upbringing in the bush, surrounded by stories and family.
“Painting makes me think of home,” she says. “When I travel and see new places, it reminds me of where I’m from.”
Sonya works across many mediums, including drawing, painting, mosaics, murals, basket weaving, and silkscreen printing. She has contributed to the Irra Wangga Language Programs and worked with art centres in Geraldton, Carnarvon, and Port Hedland.
Currently, she’s focused on painting the upper Gascoyne and Mt Augustus region. “It’s red sand and spinifex country,” she says. “Spring brings wildflowers and running creeks. I have many stories to tell—painting helps bring them out.”
Image: Burringurrah – Mt Augustus
