Unseen Creatures
Let the Maribyrnong Thrive
See our Community Quilt as part of the Craft and Quilt Fair
September 9-12, 2026
Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, South Wharf
Wednesday to Saturday 10am – 4pm
Through our hands and our hearts we can all show love and care for Maribyrnong/ Mirrangbamurn and the complex waterways that flow with
life giving energy across our land.
The Maribyrnong River / Mirrangbamurn* is more than a waterway
A living being. A cultural landscape. A place of deep time.
For thousands of years, this river has sustained life across what is now Melbourne’s west. For the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and the Bunurong / Boon Wurrung peoples of the Eastern Kulin Nation, Mirrangbamurn is Country; alive with memory, meaning and reciprocal relationships between people, water and all living things. The river reminds us that water connects generations, carrying stories from the past into the future.
This work is an invitation to pause, to notice, and to remember our place within the living community of the river.
Inspired by the microfauna research of Dr. Robert Walsh, the Maribyrnong River and Waterways Association invited communities across the catchment from the Macedon Ranges Shire through to the City of Maribyrnong, to stitch embroidered portraits of microfauna: the tiny, often unseen creatures that quietly sustain the web of life.
Each stitch became an act of attention. Around tables, in community halls and shared spaces, conversations unfolded about water, belonging and care. Guided by the wisdom generously shared by First Nations Elders, writers, artists and knowledge holders, participants reflected on a simple but profound question:
What would it mean to bring ourselves back into good relations with water?
The final quilt will be a triptych – 3 quilts that have been created by people from across the Maribyrnong Catchment, neighbouring regions and as far away as London. It will bring together 138 individual submissions. Here’s a sneak preview of the beautiful embroidered map of the catchment which will be featured in the central quilt crafted by Maxine West.
Every panel tells a story of care. Together they form a portrait not only of the river’s smallest inhabitants, but of a community choosing to see, cherish and stand alongside a living river.
This story unfolds at a time when the Maribyrnong Catchment is under increasing pressure. The river is one of Victoria’s most flow-stressed waterways. Decades of over-extraction, a drying climate and growing demands for water continue to diminish the life the river can sustain, while the environmental water long promised has yet to arrive.
This quilt cannot restore a river.
But perhaps it can restore something equally important: our capacity to notice, to care, and to act together.
We would like to sincerely thank the Maribyrnong Catchment community who have wholeheartedly embraced this project. Special thanks go to Kim Reilly, Seabreeze Quilters for her community quilting guidance without whom the project would have been impossible. Heart-felt thanks to Maxine West who volunteered to create the exquisite centrepiece map of the Maribyrnong catchment and whose gentle nudges around the story of the quilt were invaluable. We also really appreciated the time, energy and expertise of Georgia Reilly, The Quilt Merchant and all the embroiderers, stitchers, patchers, quilters, machinists and hand sewers that gave freely to this project.
May this collective act of making become a quiet call to action – one that inspires deeper relationships with Mirrangbamurn and meaningful care for the waterways that sustain us all.
*Mirrangbamurn is the current Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung name for the Maribyrnong River. The Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation is currently undertaking research into finding an appropriate translation.
The Unseen Creatures
There are eight specific microfauna creatures that we have focused on in this project. Embroidery patterns were made from the exquisite photographs of microfauna that appear on Dr Robert Walsh’s website – so yes they are 100% anatomically correct! Our stitchers however let their creativity fly with coloured thread, fabrics, beads and sequins! We hope you enjoy our stitched collections of the eight creatures we have profiled. Thanks to Peter Hoyne for taking the time to photograph all the pieces as they made their way to me via post, courier, or rendezvous.
Newman
Affectionately known as Newman to our embroiderers, Newnhamia Fenestrata’s simple clean lines allowed for some added creative flair in the pieces that came in. This creature is a small freshwater crustacean species belonging to the seed shrimp family Notodromadidae. Like other ostracods, it has a tiny, bivalved carapace (shell) enclosing its body.
Daphney
Daphney was a popular choice and no two look alike! Dr Robert Walsh tells us that Cladocera : Ceriodaphnia sp. is common and found often within the littoral zone of ponds, billabongs, and waterways, feeding on algae. Mature individuals may reach 0.5mm in total body length.
Campto
Campto was a creature that inspired detailed embroidery work, often highly beaded and intricate with lots of bold colour choices. Cladocera : Camptocercus Australis is found in freshwater environments, often associated with leaf litter vegetation and substrates in wetlands or lagoons in Australia.
Cyclops
Cyclopoida : Mesocyclops Leuckarti, or affectionately known as ‘Cyclops’ amongst those who have taken the time to get to know this creature through stitching, is a common species found through out Australian inland waters. Typical body size is 750um. Generally it is found in the leaf litter shallows of standing bodies of water or in the back waters of slow flowing rivers, amongst aquatic vegetationL
Di
Di was another popular choice for our stitchers . Dr Robert Walsh tells us that Diaptomidae: Diaptomus sp. is widespread across much of northern Australia where it is typically present in the open waters of ponds, reservoirs, wetlands etc. It is believed to feed mainly on algae and bacteria.
Moina
Our embroiderers loved to give Moina a little bit of sparkle! Cladocera: Moina is commonly found seasonally within ponds, billabongs, and waterways. This species consumes algae and may be quite numerous in number, when present.
Tas
Considered a giant in the microfauna world at 3mm, the delightful Tas dazzled our embroiderers who lace-lined and french knotted their way into designing this creature’s costumery.
Cyprididae: Mytilocypris Tasmanicus display notable shell morphology and size variations that correlate with water salinity. Like other cypridids, they can produce drought-resistant eggs to survive the drying out of temporary water bodies.
Eudi
Eudi was a shy creature that elicited intricate and delicate designs from our embroiderers. Calanoida : Diaptomidae : Eudiaptomus Gracilis is typically present in the open waters of ponds, reservoirs, wetlands etc. It is believed to feed mainly on algae and bacteria. They use jerky, drag-powered swimming motions to move through the water column.
Who was involved?
We have had over 200 people involved in workshops across the catchment from Maribyrnong, Altona, Niddrie, Essendon, Sunbury, Gisborne, Bolinda, Romsey and Lancefield. Individuals from further afield including Preston, Clifton Hill, Northcote and more coastal from Harmers Haven and East Gippsland are represented. Groups from the Native Fish Association, Greater Western Water, RMIT University, and Local Councils have also participated. We even have one submission from someone’s mother in London!
Ann Cassidy, Carmel Hempenstall, Chris Podsially, Jane Danaher, Jennie Franklin, Julie McQueen, Liz Meddings, Mary Kean, Maxine West and Sara Coward.
Contributions to the quilt came from the following groups and individuals:
Maribyrnong U3A
Ann Cassidy, Carmel Hempenstall, Chris Podsially, Emily Maher, Jane Danaher, Jennie Franklin, Julie McQueen, Kiran Murphy, Liz Meddings, Martina Ryan, Mary Kean, Mary Veale, Maureen Marshall, Rebecca Luxford, Sara Coward, Sue Taylor.
Sunbury
Adelaide, Anne, Caroline, Cheryl, Dawn, Juliette, Sheila, Shelley.
Gisborne
Allison Baker, Ann Verheyl, Helen Fraser, Helen Hallett, Joanne Sammut, Julie Warnes, Molly York, Rhonda Schurmann, Sandi Csoban.
Riddells Creek
Dawn / Laurel, Donna Sparks, Elizabeth Stenborg, Gill Williams, Karen H, Lesley Crow, Lydia Best, Mary Giordano, Meryn Ellis, Pamela Brooks, Rosemary, Sarah Bourke, Tamara.
Lancefield
Alison de Jong, Beth Child, Bev Laing, Christine Geyteman, Dawn Hold, Jenny Rowe, Jo Marsh, Lesley Vincett, Margaret Wills, Marjolein Meyer, Maxine West, Susan Johnson, Trish Stuart, Vivian Broadway.
Seabreeze Quilters
Ariel Verona, Caroline Schram, Chritine Crofton, Jill Woods, Juliette Freeman, Kim Reilly, Margaret Conlon, Melissa Bult, Pat Greenwood.
Independents
Anne Baldaccino (Niddrie), Amelia Young (South Gippsland), Beth Gyzen (Altona), Denise Bowring (Northcote) Fiona Gyzen (Brookfield), Gill Sinnott (Clifton Hill), Maddie Baldaccino (Niddrie), Maxine Howell (London), Rebecca Avery (Harmers Haven), Suzanne Peyton (Preston).
Native Fish Association
George Paras, Jayne Burton, Joshua Lay, l.c.dkson, Mitchell King, Naomi Sleeman, Ruby Pivet, Theo, Tracey, Trees of Magpies.
RMIT University Staff and Students
Alexandre Faustino, Glenda Mejia, Jamine Pearson, Jarune, Libby Porter, Melissa Neave, Nicolas Gurra, Rebecca Olive, Wendy Steele.
Greater Western Water Staff
Alice Nguyen-Manderson, Anna Canturi, Bec Alcott, Connie Barbagallo, Elissa Benjamin, Isabella Merritt, Jacki Dunn, Katrina Shuttleworth, Melissa Merrit, Nicole Bovezza, Rachel, Jacgung, Rebecca Barber, Renee Thompson, Sylvia Campbell.
Who has funded the
creation of the quilt?
The quilt has been enabled by leveraging funding across multiple grants we have received including from Melbourne Water, Greater Western Water, Moonee Valley Council and Maribyrnong City Council as well as philanthropic funding we have received from TIMID, Isaacson Davis Trust.
Where will the quilt be displayed after the Craft & Quilt Fair in September?
The plan is for the quilt to travel up the catchment being housed in Libraries, community spaces and at local festivals. In May 2025 it will form a central display in the Lancefield Quilting Show.