The community of Maningrida has long been home to rich and vibrant weaving traditions. For generations, local Burarra women have created intricately woven fish traps, bags, ceremonial skirts, and other fiber items using locally sourced natural materials and dyes. In 2021, the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne commissioned Maningrida women to produce the large-scale work. In this video, some of the 13 artists travelled from Maningrida in Central-West Arnhem Land, to Melbourne, where they saw their completed work, Mun-Dirra, displayed in the at the National Gallery of Victoria for the first time.

It is based on traditional fish traps that are stretched underwater as a linear fish net. Each panel, with its unique pattern and coloring—including one that resembles the black, red, and yellow of the Aboriginal flag — reflects the individual style of its makers. Echoing the way woven materials integrate disparate strands to make a cohesive whole, the panels of Mun-Dirra intertwine and overlap to form a unified installation. Together they bring together land and sea and suggest the power of Aboriginal women’s collaboration.