Exhibition: Fri 13 Feb - Sun 15 Mar
Launch: 5.30pm, Fri 13 Feb

Warupaw Uu (Echo of Drums) creates a dialogue between past and present, examining notions of people, place, identity and belonging.

In this new body of work, Sienna Loban reflects on her matrilineal connections to Country as a young First Nations woman from Far North Queensland.

Through these interconnected themes, Sienna challenges versions of ‘official history’ by shifting dominant gaze from colonial perspectives, to reframe and reinterpret the archives from her own lived experiences, grounded in self-determination and cultural continuity.

These depictions are not marks of an end, but of ongoing life – quiet traces that persist through time, place and space.

Warupaw Uu (Echo of Drums) celebrates the resilience of First Nations peoples and cultures, affirming that what has lived, endures – continuing and evolving through each generation.

Sienna Loban won six awards in the 2025 Energy exhibition, including Tanks Arts Centre Curator’s Award, with the opportunity for a solo exhibition.

Image: Seclusion of Girls in North Queensland (detail), Sienna Loban, 2023, oil paint on canvas

Artist Bio

Born on Waiben/Thursday Island in the Torres Strait and now based in Gimuy/Cairns, Sienna Loban is a proud, young First Nations woman belonging to the Meriam, Maluilgal, Naghirlgal Kulkalgal and Wuthathi Peoples.

Sienna’s work interrogates and reframes historical resources relating to her personal history and cultural heritage. She navigates the intersections and tensions between memory, identity and politics to amplify Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge, voices and experiences.

Having recently completed her Year 12 studies, Sienna will commence a double degree in a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual Art) and Bachelor of Laws (Honours) at the Queensland University of Technology in 2026.

Sienna’s potential as an emerging artist has been widely recognised through numerous exhibitions and awards.

Awards & Achievements

• QAGOMA Creative Generation Excellence Award
• Tanks Curator’s Award
• CIAF Cultural Storytelling Award
• QATSIF Creative Arts Competition
• St Monica’s College Senior Cultural Student of the Year
• Catholic Education Encounter Award Winner
• Best New Talent Winner - Cairns Art Society
• Ergon Energy Network Award
• Excellence of Visual Art Winner - 2025 Cairns Business Liaison Association’s Excellence Awards

Photo gallery