$1,500.00 Regional Arts NSW QUICKS funding

$1,345.14 FACSIA Indigenous Women's Issues Grant

Louise Marne is a Murawari woman with a passion for traditional weave.  In 2007 Outback Arts assisted Louise in identifying a professional development opportunity in the WOMADelaide Festival in South Australia.  In February-March 2007 six NPY artists (NPY are the Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands near the borders of South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia) from the Tjanpi Aboriginal Baskets Project visited Adelaide to conduct a series of weaving workshops over a seven days period.  Louise was one of only 15 artists internationally to be accepted into the Tjanpi Desert Weavers Project. 

Along with other artists Louise created a number of large-scale woven forms which were exhibited at WOMADelaide 2007 with basket weaving demonstrations and workshops during the three days of the festival.

In Louise’s words…

My name is Louise Marne and I am a Murawari woman living in Coonamble in western NSW.  I have always wanted to be part of a traditional weaving circle.  My mother taught me how to weave when I was 10 years old.  We worked on fishing nets in Inverell.  My mother is from Brewarrina where the Aboriginal Fish Traps are.  She learned many of her skills there.  We didn’t use traditional fibres though – we used string and cord and polyester nylon and whatever we could find.  We weren’t encouraged to use the traditional fibres at that time because the influence of the European culture and because it was more readily available.

I have started using traditional fibres out at Quambone that I have collected from the Macquarie Marshes.  There’s a lot I’ve got to learn about certain grasses and how to handle and work with the fibres… I don’t know anyone in the region who weaves and I would like to take the skills that I learn and teach others in workshops.  I’ve had a lot of involvement over the years in volunteering for kids groups teaching raffia weaving.  I want to see Aboriginal mats and other weave products here.  In the past many mats were traded in this area.  A lot of the traditional weaving here is connected to the rivers – like fishing baskets, nets and also string bags.

In our own communities we could have weaving circles.  The women who weave the string hold together the family.  I think that creatively and spiritually it’s not just the artwork…if someone appreciates their work it gives them a sense of creativity about themselves.  The young women here would enjoy this.  I would like to see my daughter pass down these skills too.

ArtReach Article

‘Weaving a Yarn’ By A. Sidoti, ArtReach, Autumn 2007

More Info: Tjanpi Desert Weavers Project