Pat Ingram is a Koori woman and her families language groups are Wemba Wemba , Yorta Yorta and Wergaia. Born and raised in Victoria, she has lived and worked in South Australia for over 20 years. A textile and fibre artist, she loves working with fibre, threads, and fibres. In the last few years, she has been making birds from recycled materials.
Pat’s maternal Great Grandparents both had Bird totems, the black cockatoo, and the pelican. Her mother had an affinity with Black Swans, and she has always been fascinated by small birds. It is a large part of who she is.
In 2021 she took part in a project as part of the Tarnanthi festival in which two Emus were created. She then began making birds sculptures from Marine and land debris. In 2022 she made many birds, so she calls it “The year of the Birds.”
Her bird sculptures are made with materials that are deemed as waste that could be harmful to birds and their habitats. These include old fishing nets, fibres from old ropes that come from fishing boats, wire from old electrical cables, chicken wire, and offcuts of PVC pipes, as well as other recycled materials.
