MEET THE JUDGES
National Indigenous Fashion Awards 2022
YATU WIDDERS HUNT
General Manager at Cox Inall Ridgeway, founder of #ausindigenousfashion on Instagram & Facebook, passionate about social justice, Indigenous Affairs and style.
Yatu is a member of the Dunghutti and Anaiwan peoples of the Northern Tablelands of NSW. Yatu has a background in communications, PR and community engagement. She has worked across various sectors including Government and the not for profit sector. She is currently the General Manager of Indigenous social change agency, Cox Inall Ridgeway.
In 2017, Yatu founded online community Australian Indigenous Fashion to celebrate the thriving First Nations fashion sector. She is a Board member on the Australian Fashion Council Board. Through her work she has collaborated with a number of organisations on First Nations Fashion and storytelling projects, including Country Road Group, Broadway Shopping Centre and NITV. She regularly speaks at conferences and in the media on issues of First Nations fashion and design.
PRUE-ELLEN THOMAS
Prue-ellen Thomas is Head of Marketing and Communications at the Australian Fashion Council.
Prue-ellen Thomas is the Head of Marketing & Communications at the Australian Fashion Council where she is the custodian of the AFC brand across all touchpoints, supports programs like AFC Fashtech Lab and Edit Collection, and is project lead on the world-first Australian Fashion trademark and campaign.
With over 20 years’ experience, Prue-ellen’s approach to marketing has been built from her time in a wide variety of creative industries, working across fashion brands, online publishing, start-ups, television, magazines and music.
JACKLYN RIVERA
Jacklyn is the design manager for women’s casual and denim at Country Road, who are also sponsors of the Fashion Design NIFA.
Starting from a background in wholesale, Jacklyn has pursued a career in design with some of the biggest brands in the country, focusing on leading the way in sustainability and locally made product.
Jacklyn is recognised for her strong leadership qualities and passion for conscious product design that brings together environmental and social solutions without compromising future needs. These attributes have delivered strong commercial and creative results in a highly competitive retail industry over the past 13 years of her career.
“I’m looking forward to engaging with some of the best talent in First Nations communities, learning about traditional methods of creativity and their cultural significance.Through our partnership with DAAFF, Country Road offers an annual mentorship to the winner of the NIFA Fashion Design category. I’m honoured to have been a part of the mentorship program, working with Julie Shaw of Maara Collective in 2021 and Denni Francisco of Ngali in 2022. We’re looking forward to welcoming the 2023 winner into the evolving program.For Country Road, our DAAFF partnership is an integral part of our reconciliation journey. It’s been an intentionally slow and considered process to ensure our support is based on the needs and wants of Indigenous designers and artists.”
PERINA DRUMMOND
Perina Drummond is the Creative Director, Head Stylist, and founder of Jira Models.
Perina is a proud Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal woman with professional experience in modelling, runway styling, editorial styling, film set and costume design, as well as events planning and management.
In 2017 Perina founded Jira Models Agency where she works to mentor young models while fulfilling the role of Creative Director and Head Stylist. Today, Jira models continues to be a successful agency, changing the face of Australian fashion and providing career pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander talents into the modelling industry. Jira represents First Peoples of Australia in the modelling world whose talent are driven by their strong cultural connections and their desire to influence and inspire communities around Australia.
Perina’s previous involvement with the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation’s Fashion Projects over the past few years encompasses key roles and events including being a NIFA nominee for her work with Jira Models in 2020, Creative Director for Country to Couture and the IFP Runway at Australian Fashion Week in 2021, as well as Head Stylist for Country to Couture in 2022.
Imagery courtesy of our judges.
Banner image: Peggy Griffiths Legacy Dress. Model Billie-Jean Hamlet. Photo by Georges Antoni for marie claire.