What this year’s International Women’s Day means to Bobbi Lockyer

Proud Ngarluma, Kariyarra, Nyulnyul, and Yawuru woman and mum of four, Bobbi Lockyer is showing no signs of slowing down.

The self-confessed ‘queer feminist pink-haired mermaid queen’ and NAIDOC award-winning artist had her designs featured on the runways of New York Fashion Week and across the pages of Vogue. Constantly striving for a more "colourful and inclusive world" whilst drawing inspiration from her upbringing, Bobbi’s newly launched fashion label, Gantharri, translates to mean both "Queen Bee" and "Grandmother" in the Ngarluma language.

As Bobbi continues to use her lens to smash glass ceilings in the art and fashion industries, we sat down with her on the eve of International Women’s Day to learn more about how she’s using her art to pave the way for social change.

Video transcript

BOBBI LOCKYER: To me, International Women's Day means recognizing the trailblazing women who paved the way for people like me to pursue our dreams and aspirations. You know, my grandmother-- may she rest in peace-- and her sisters and my sisters and my mother and my aunties and all the strong women from my family are the people that I want to celebrate and recognize because they all helped shape me who I am today.

As a photographer and an artist, I'm really drawn to the stories of women. I think they have such powerful stories to share, and that advice and knowledge is always passed on. And so I really love to create those images that tell their story, that narrate that journey. But it's not only about celebrating other women. It's also about realizing that we actually face so much discrimination and gender biases and that things do need to change.

I will be amplifying the voices and the stories of the Indigenous photographers, part of our collective Blak Lens. I will be posting their imagery. You can check it out on the Blak Lens Instagram page. And I will just be working really hard to amplify these beautiful, strong women.