Aly’s art is made of stuff. Lots of stuff. Natural pigments, plant fibres, fishing line, old tyres - in fact, just about anything that can be found or harvested, whether it’s from a tree, a rock, a junk pile or a kitchen sink. Aly uses anything and everything she can to create and design art of both aesthetic and functional beauty. From sculptures to clothing to handbags to abstract photographic experiments, which, she claims, “reflect upon the social, political and personal to mourn the overlooked and celebrate the discarded.”

As more and more of ‘old Darwin’ disappears before our eyes, Francine Chinn looks at an ‘old’ Darwin family, their impact on the national and international arts scene, and a pre air-conditioned lifestyle marked by diversity and a very intriguing heritage.