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Rachel Bywaters' exhibited works are not for sale.
For commission enquiry, please contact Rachel via Instagram @rachbywaters
About the Artist - Rachel Bywaters
Rachel Bywaters is a multidisciplinary artist and proud Gamilaroi woman of mixed-European heritage, currently living and working on Kabi Kabi Country. Her practice encompasses printmaking, jewellery, sculpture, and installation, and is grounded in a deep commitment to storytelling, cultural expression, and First Nations truth-telling.
She is currently in the final year of a Bachelor of Contemporary Australian Indigenous Art at Griffith University’s Queensland College of Art and Design. Informed by her ancestral lineage and lived experience, Bywaters’ work explores themes of resistance and resilience. Her recent practice incorporates native Gamilaroi grasses—materials imbued with cultural and symbolic significance—to subvert colonial narratives and elevate First Nations perspectives.
Bywaters’ work has been exhibited in group shows including Beneath This Skin at the Queensland State Archives, Undergrowth at the Queensland University Art Galleries, Bonyi: Living Culture at Munimba-ja, and No Souvenirs at the upcoming Horizons Festival. Upcoming exhibitions also include The Shape of Time at Artisan, Glass-Box, Griffith University’s printmaking showcase, and Fresh Eyes at Redcliffe Art Gallery. In 2024, she was invited to judge the Next Generation Art Prize at the Matthew Flinders Art Gallery on Bribie Island, where she currently resides.
Material
Lost Wax Cast Sterling Silver
Information
Carrying Country (2024) is a series of lost wax cast silver adornments made from direct impressions of Guli—Native Millet sourced from Gamilaroi Country. Using the technique of casting with wax and burning out the plant fibres, Bywaters captures the intricate imprint of this culturally significant grass and its seeds, preserving them in silver.
These native grains have sustained her ancestors for thousands of years. Their use in baking represents a vital thread of traditional knowledge and cultural continuity. Each adornment becomes a powerful reminder of that enduring relationship—an expression of carrying Country with you, always.
Beyond personal significance, these pieces also speak to the broader cultural practice of trade. Native grasses like Guli were once carried across vast distances, exchanged between communities, and woven into the fabric of connection, movement, and nourishment.
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