Deb Saunders said she and husband Andy were emotional when they saw artwork they had commissioned for their living and dining space on The Block.
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"It was so beautiful. The meaning behind it was lovely too. The symbol in the middle represents a meeting place where people from all walks of life can come together. The circles around the outside are neighbouring tribes. They journey along the pathways (lines) and meet in the middle to share stories, culture, food and celebrations.
"This felt like a wonderful piece to have in the heart of our house and the place where people will meet to share food and fun."
Because the artwork was so big, Matty from house four came and gave Andy a hand to hang it.
"When it went up it was just so visually stunning. The hero of the room but without jarring the eye. It just worked so well with everything else we had planned in the space. Introducing something so large could have created a risk of overwhelming the space but this was cohesive with the rest of the room. It was definitely the hero of the space.
"We are so grateful for Melissa's talent and hard work.
"We think Melissa's artworks are innovative and we love her use of colour. She's extremely talented and a really lovely person. We thought she was from Victoria originally but soon after meeting we realised she was from Nambucca Gumbayngirr country so that made it all the more special. Practically neighbours!"
It was Harrie from The Block Shop who introduced Deb to Miimi and Jiinda.
"She knows me and my style well. She's an incredibly talented girl and a wealth of information," said Deb.
"I wanted to change some of the colours that I had seen in the first work that Harrie showed me for our commissioned piece.
"We checked in with Melissa the artist to check that making changes didn't change the story of the painting.
"When Melissa said it wouldn't we commissioned a much bigger version of the original artwork Harrie had showed me with the colours that suited my palette.
"Coming in at a whopping 2.5 x 1.8 metres it was not a small task for Melissa to complete this in a week! It was also framed in raw oak timber for us."
When it came time for the feedback from the three judges, Shaynna Blaze, Darren Palmer and Neale Whitaker, Deb said she was nervous.
"I always get so nervous at judging when I know someone's heart and soul has gone into creating a special piece for us.
"I was the same when my niece Tori and her partner Brad from local business How's That House built our stunning timber vanity units and shave cabinets for our bathrooms!
"I was far more nervous than I am on normal weeks. I just wanted the judges to love it as much as we did.
"There was no need to worry as the judges absolutely loved them all.
"It wasn't just the judges who love the artwork. Everyone did. After seeing ours Foreman Keith was even considering a piece by Melissa for his own house," said Deb.
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