Cabinet d’inspiration aborigène

Painter in Residence Polly Coulson was inspired by her adopted home’s culture for this mid-century style piece.

This mid-century modern piece has been painted with an unusual starting reference. Painter in Residence Polly Coulson of ATTIC Furniture QLD wanted to celebrate the native cultural heritage of her home country, and so her design is inspired by Australian Aboriginal Art.

Polly began by painting the casing and the feet using Chalk Paint® in Chicago Grey. This is a great contemporary and clean neutral which allows the statement drawers to take centre stage.

Polly’s colour palette of Chalk Paint® in Olive, Burgundy, Arles, Honfleur and Antoinette is typical of Australian Aboriginal art and design. Using natural resources and local materials to create dyes and paints means the traditional Australian Aboriginal colour palette is comprised of rich, earthy, organic shades.

Polly painted a base of Honfleur on the drawers first, followed by a wash of Olive (to create a wash, dilute your Chalk Paint® roughly 50:50 with water. Be aware darker colours may need more water added) to add some extra nuance and dimension. She then used a Large Round Detail Brush to apply lines of Honfleur, Burgundy, Arles and Antoinette. Dots and lines are integral elements of Australian Aboriginal design – please click here to learn more. Polly then sealed her piece with Matt Chalk Paint® Lacquer, which gives an authentic finish similar to the dusty or chalky finish of much folk art from around the world. The background shutters are painted with Napoleonic Blue.