This design is a salt water story, depicting sea life from Rocky Point and Nardilmuk homelands, in Central Arnhem Land. The etching features the diverse water creatures including dugong, shark, prawn, fish, sea-snake, and lobster.

“We always go fishing and get these fish and animals and cook them on the fire for eating together. We can only see the dugongs at night time, that’s when we hunt them.

We get that line and go fishing down at the rocks and get shark and stingray. Some fish we can catch with a net or spear and some we catch out in the really deep blue sea with a boat.

In this design the animals are alive underwater, that’s why I made it blue all over.”

This fabric was created using the linocut printing technique. The lino tile has been carved by the artist in Maningrida, and has been printed by hand using a variety of colours and layers. The linocut technique ensures each textile piece is a one-off, limited edition piece. Bábbarra Women’s Centre supports the economic independence of Indigenous women in the Arnhem Land community of Maningrida, Northern Territory, Australia. Designs created by the women at Bábbarra reflect strong cultural knowledge, which is passed down to younger generations through their textile design practice.

Hand Sewn top in a simple loose fitting shape.