Widely celebrated for their popular range of womenswear featuring their original artwork, First Nations brand Miimi & Jiinda have expanded their business offerings this month through a new collaboration with interior brand Jatana Interiors.
Founded by Sonya Marish, Jatana Interiors specialises in antique tiles as well as the process of reproducing tiles.
For her brand's newest range of tiles, Marish joined forces with Indigenous artist and designer Melissa Greenwood from Miimi & Jiinda for a new and unique tile design.
Created as a limited-edition encaustic tile collection, the Jatana Interiors x Miimi & Jiinda collection has been a passion project for both Marish and Greenwood, who have been working on the designs and manufacture for more than four years.
"After all the years in the making, receiving the tiles and opening the boxes was so exciting because they were more special and more beautiful than I could have imagined," Marish said.
"The colours were perfect when comparing to Melissa's art pieces, the tones that we decided to use worked out beautifully."
When Greenwood had the desire to design custom tiles for her own space, she knew Marish was the right person to go to.
With Jatana Interiors being located on Bundjalung Country, Northern Rivers NSW— Greenwood's ancestral homelands and where she lived during her childhood, she knew it was somewhat of a sign that the pair should join forces.
"It was a good opportunity for us to finally align our talents together and I love that I was able to collaborate with a local businesswoman on Bunjalung Country," Greenwood said.
"I love Jatana Interiors tiles, and Sonya, the creator—she's a beautiful woman who is very grounded, authentic and beautiful in her craft.
"She is very passionate about her work, just like I am about mine. So, us coming together to create these designs felt very aligned, natural and exciting."
When it came to the curation of the tiles and the design featured on them, Greenwood said all tiles are handmade with traditional techniques and methods and are not mass-produced.
"I visited her beautiful space in Federal and got to feel the tiles and learn about how they were created—that really inspired me. Because they are all handmade with traditional techniques and methods and are not mass produced. They are all just little pieces of art—every tile is so beautiful and intricate," she said.
"It's another way of sharing the artwork, the story, the connection. Tiles have an ancient grounding energy; they will stay in homes for years to come."
With this collaboration marking yet another new venture for Miimi & Jiinda, Greenwood's plans for further business expansion are sure to be seen in future collaborations and collections released this year.
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