Behind the artwork
A Tribute to Leah Cummins
In memory of Leah Cummins, a proud Mayi woman from Northwestern Queensland, whose passing leaves a void in the artistic community.
We acknowledge and pay tribute to Leah Cummins, QMHW’s featured artist in 2023, 2024 and 2025, who passed away and was well-known and respected in the health and community services sectors for her love of art, her passion to inspire and uplift her people. Through Bunya Designs, Leah contributions to sharing culture and stories through her art conveyed powerful narratives that honored identity, strength, and a sense of belonging. Her creativity and leadership have made a meaningful and enduring impact on the creative industries and within the many communities and organisations she collaborated with.
We extend our deepest sympathies to Leah’s family and loved ones.
The digital version of the artwork ‘Stronger connection creates strong health’ by Leah Cummins.
About Leah Cummins
Sharing her love of Indigenous art to the world as the owner of Bunya Designs, Leah finds inspiration in her cultural identity, relishing the opportunity to bring stories of her country and people to life in her art. She creates digital and hand-painted Indigenous art for personal and commercial clients.
“I pay respect to the ancestors who give me these stories in my creativity, to share my culture that transcends words and draws people into wanting to learn about First Nations people,” she said.
“I paint both traditional and contemporary art using storytelling in every art piece to educate and teach about my people’s culture.
“I hope to inspire and uplift my people by contributing to the sharing of culture and stories through my art. I want to share my love of my people with you.”
About the Artwork
Informing the visual identity for Queensland Mental Health Week, Leah’s artwork ‘Stronger connection creates strong health’ tells a story of connecting to a healthier life, “back to the ways of our ancestors”. It showcases the important role country and community play in people’s social and emotional wellbeing.
“This piece is inspired by our need to connect – a stronger connection creates a better life,” Leah said.
Amongst the plethora of beautiful colours and patterns used in the artwork and overall visual identity are several with multi-layered meanings.
Purple (for positivity, empowerment, belonging, bravery, and encouragement of creativity) and green (for balance, harmony, personal development, self-acceptance, compassion for self and others, renewal, love of nature, and a love of family, friends, pets, and home) feature predominantly as the official colours for Queensland Mental Health Week.
The footprints represent different people’s journeys with their mental health and the rivers that flow in this painting have people sitting around the waterholes in green.
“These people seek nourishment from the water and land to connect with their ancestors and find their inner peace connected to country,” Leah explained.
“The meeting places in yellow, with green people sitting, are those that meet in our community to find support in one another. We all need someone to help guide us. Even when we feel we are along these meeting places give hope.”
“The elements of native foods remind us that a healthy heart gives us healthier minds and spirits. This is also a celebration of returning to what our ancestors once knew. Your awareness of self comes when you connect with country, belonging to a community gives you strength and support, and finding connection with yourself, ancestors, and the land leads to a healthier spirit.”
The artwork was commissioned by CheckUP as the coordinator of Queensland Mental Health Week. To enable a diverse array of uplifting promotional assets to be created, Leah provided the piece in both painted and digital formats.
Leah’s message to the Queensland community through this artwork is one shared with love and harmony.
“May we all be better human beings with a healthy heart, mind, and spirit and find our purpose in life,” she said.
See more about Leah and her artwork on the Bunya Designs website, Facebook page, and Instagram page.