Behind the Business

This week we are hearing from - Kristal & Jazz Matthews, Wilay Designs

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

My Name is Kristal, I’m in business with my sister Jazz. I’m a proud Ngunawal woman currently living on Ngarrindjeri country. We are inspired by family stories and by our surroundings. We both love to travel together, within Australia and overseas. We really enjoy seeing new places and finding inspiration for our art within these places.

Can you tell us about your business?

We’re self-taught artists. We have been painting ever since we can remember, it’s something we both love so much and are very passionate about. In 2019, we decided to share our art online, we did this in hopes to maybe sell a couple artworks to be able to donate some of those funds to the Mito Foundation. This Foundation holds a special place in our hearts, and we’re so proud of the fact since starting this small business we have been able to help raise over $2,000 for the Mito Foundation.

Where is your market (local, regional, State, National)?

Since starting this Wilay Designs journey, the response has been amazing! We have been fortunate enough to be able to sell our art locally, interstate and even overseas. We’ve had our art displayed in numerous exhibitions around South Australia and are grateful to have won multiple awards for our art. We have had our art digitally displayed on silos, we sell our art at local stores and also had the opportunity to speak at a school about our culture and art.

Is there any other information or encouragement you would like to share with other Indigenous Women?

We were nervous to share our art at first and to turn this into a small business. We have been really enjoying the journey so far and would recommend to others that:

“if you want to do something, you’re passionate about just go for it you also might be surprised with the outcome”

“We’ve worked hard to find and make opportunities for ourselves, so just don’t give up”

“It takes a lot of hard work, but it is so rewarding for us to be about to share our culture and a piece of us with the world”