“It is my job to do it.”<\/p>\n
Whether it is print media or social media, Rostron said she recognised the opportunities to “show off and share my culture, and represent my community”.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cindy Rostron takes pride in modelling for other First Nations artists. (Supplied: Sarrita King x Edition; photographed by Elena Caldaci)<\/p>\n
On Wednesday night, at the National Indigenous Fashion Awards (NIFAs) in Darwin, Rostron was rewarded for her work with the Cecilia Cubillo Young Achiever Award.<\/p>\n
“It is incredible to see what Cindy has achieved in only a few years,” judge Yatu Widders-Hunt said.<\/p>\n
“It is great to see Cindy carve out her own brand and use social media to tell stories on her own terms, and in her unique voice.<\/p>\n
“Her commitment to sharing her experiences and mentoring other young people is particularly impressive. It is clear that culture and community are what drives Cindy.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cindy Rostron modelled during Australian Fashion Week 2025 for Aboriginal brand Ngali. (ABC News: Brendan Esposito)<\/p>\n
From ‘bush girl’ to Vogue model<\/p>\n
Growing up in the small Northern Territory community of Kolorbidahdah in West Arnhem Land, Rostron said she assumed her career would follow in her father’s footsteps.<\/p>\n
“Growing up watching my father doing the ranger job, land management, and collecting crocodile eggs, and killing feral animals, and looking after all the rock art, all the sacred sites, I wanted to be a ranger,” Rostron said.<\/p>\n
But breaking into arts and modelling was always there in the back of her mind.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For two years after graduating from high school, Cindy Rostron worked as a ranger. (ABC News: Che Chorley)<\/p>\n
“When I was little I was watching Magnolia Maymuru doing the modelling, and I was like, ‘Maybe one day I’ll be like her’, so she kind of inspired me,” Rostron said.<\/p>\n
In 2021, Rostron’s sister-in-law took her to Barunga Festival \u2014 one of the NT’s biggest celebrations of Indigenous art, sport, music and traditional craft \u2014 and encouraged her to take part in a runway show.<\/p>\n
The then-teenager said she was hesitant about the idea, but knew she had to “see what’s out there”.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cindy Rostron modelled for the first time in 2021 at Barunga Festival. (Supplied.)<\/p>\n
“I modelled the design B\u00e0bbarra Design, one from my family in Maningrida and I just went up from there \u2026 unexpectedly,” she said.<\/p>\n
Over the following years, Rostron continued to knit together her two passions: life out on country, where she worked for two years as a ranger like her father, and the fashion industry.<\/p>\n
It was this merging of worlds that secured Rostron her first feature in Vogue Australia in 2022.<\/p>\n
“I was doing a photo shoot in Broome and Kununurra and they invited me to go celebrate in Perth,” she said.<\/p>\n
“From there, they told me to do a photo shoot in my country, my great-great-grandmother’s country in Dukala-djarranj, and I did the first photo shoot there, when I had pink hair.”<\/p>\n
Loading Instagram content<\/p>\n
It was not until some time later that she realised the photos would be published in Vogue.<\/p>\n
“I didn’t really know what Vogue means \u2026 because I was a bush girl,” she said.<\/p>\n
Rostron has since been featured in the high-profile fashion publication several times.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Magnolia Maymuru (back left), Charlee Fraser (back right), Cindy Rostron (front right) and\u00a0Elaine George (front left) on the front cover of Vogue Australia, May 2022. (Supplied: Vogue)<\/p>\n
A family of artists<\/p>\n
Passion for the arts runs in Rostron’s family, with her mother Jay Jurrupula Rostron winning the Textile Design award at the 2024 NIFAs.<\/p>\n
“My whole family is artists and singers,” Rostron said.<\/p>\n
“My mum \u2026 was watching my grandfather doing all the arts, the weaving, and she was doing the paintings \u2026 when she was young, I think at 14 or 15.”<\/p>\n
At Rostron’s high school graduation, she donned one of her mother’s very own designs, while her father sang to her the “MiMi (Bungal)” songline, which she described as “very special and sacred \u2026 because it was given from all the spirits”.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cindy Rostron’s year 12 graduation dress was made by her mother, who is an artist herself. (Supplied.)<\/p>\n
Now 20 years old, Rostron says her family has continued to support her modelling career.<\/p>\n
“I want to keep doing this modelling \u2026 and [also] my goal is to go back out country and help my families,” she said.<\/p>\n
“At the moment I’m helping my dad \u2026 back at home, cleaning the roads with the grader.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cindy Rostron was praised by the NIFA judges for “commitment to sharing her experiences” and her prioritisation of “culture and community”. (ABC News: Pete Garnish)<\/p>\n
Rostron’s down-to-earth nature is evident in her personal style.<\/p>\n
“I like wearing baggy clothes, pants that have lots of pockets so every time when I go out hunting or fishing, I’ll just put everything in my pockets so I don’t lose anything,” she said.<\/p>\n
To other young First Nations women aspiring to a career in modelling, Rostron said: “Don’t be shy, don’t feel shame.”<\/p>\n
“Don’t be me,” she added.<\/p>\n
“Just be yourself.”<\/p>\n