06/08/2026
Making Mangi - 6-Week Course
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Starting on Saturday 8 August, Making Mangi is a 6-week weaving course with basket maker Ann McMahon. Using locally grown, harvested, and recycled fibre materials, learn weaving techniques, and create small, coiled forms that will be joined together as patches for Mangi’s skin, forming part of our lakeside collaborative artwork. Alongside developing technical skills in coiled basketry, participants will gain confidence to harvest materials and continue weaving beyond the course. You will also learn about the Murray Cod’s conservation, habitat, and First Nations cultural significance through a program of guest speakers. Participants who complete the course are invited to continue attending community weaving sessions at TAC and help bring Mangi to completion ahead of its launch.
Ann McMahon graduated with first class honours from the Textile Workshop at the Institute of the Arts (now School of Arts, ANU) in 2000. She completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Cultural Heritage Management at the University of Canberra in 2003. Her career in the arts in Canberra has included positions as: Gallery Development Officer at Australian National Capital Artists, ACT Arts Ability Officer, Public Art team member at artsACT and most recently, in Public Programs with Belconnen Arts Centre. Ann is a practising visual artist with a love of textiles going back to childhood. Her artwork typically expresses herself through its materiality and formal qualities ranging in scale from small wearables to utilitarian baskets through to large outdoor sculptures.
Making Mangi Speaker’s Program:
Saturday 8 August:
Memories of the Murray Cod With Glen Payne
Lake Tuggeranong Plan to improve water quality with Plaxy McCulloch
Carpenter Glen Payne is a hunter of introduced species, a keen fisherman and passionate environmentalist. Growing up on a farm near Jindabyne, he witnessed firsthand the increasing impact that feral animals have on Australia's native ecosystems, agricultural land, and wildlife. The first Murray Cod Glen ever caught was in Lake Tuggeranong. He holds great respect for Murray Cod and practices catch-and-release fishing, ensuring these remarkable native fish can continue to thrive for future generations. Plaxy is the Catchment Programs Officer for Healthy Waterways, ACT Government. She has been working on community education to improve the health of Lake Tuggeranong and other Canberra waterways since 2019, focusing on reducing blue-green algal outbreaks.
Saturday 15 August:
An introduction to public art projects with Steven Holland
Steven Holland grew up in the bush in Western Australia where he developed keen interest in the local snakes. He studied visual art at Curtin University WA and completed postgraduate study at Canberra School of Art. In 1998 he received a Samstag Scholarship that enabled him to study Natural History. Illustration at the Royal College of Art in London. Returning to Australia, he undertook a Doctorate on the topic of snakes and bronze at the Australian National University in 2016. A highly regarded, established sculptor, Steven completed major commissions for the Australian War Memorial in 2009 and 2020. His work is also held in the collections of Royal College of Art London, National Gallery of Australia (folio), Canberra Museum and Gallery, Art Gallery of Western Australia, University of Western Australia, Goulburn Regional Art Gallery and Sir Charles Gairdener Hospital, WA.
Saturday 22 August:
How the Fish Dreaming project is resorting and celebrating cultural fishing places and practices with Harry Davey, OzFish
Harry has over 20 years’ experience working in community engagement programs and restoration works. Growing up fishing saltwater, Harry made the tree change to Tenterfield in the early 2000s where he caught his first cod. Since then, he is a freshwater convert and has been chasing the green and gold kind ever since. Harry was educating kids in the Fishcare Program when he found out about OzFish, he immediately started up his own Chapter in Tenterfield. This Chapter has been a huge success and through this channel, Harry has coordinated countless Gone Fishing Days, Fish Rescue Days, Clean Up Days and Riparian Projects under the OzFish banner.
Saturday 29 August:
Murray Cod ecology and its importance to the people of the Murray Darling Basin with Stuart Little
Stu’s official title is Assistant Director – Riverine Ecology at the Murray-Darling Basin Authority. But what he really does is lead the Fish ‘theme’ area, providing up to date fish knowledge and expertise to the various sections within the MDBA. Passionate about protecting the environment since his High School project days, Stu was originally a soil scientist and agricultural researcher before joining the Murray-Darling Basin Commission in 2007. Since that time he has developed a love for fish through his work in the monitoring section for The Living Murray environmental watering and infrastructure program and Basin-wide environmental water planning. Stu leads a team committed to incorporating fish needs into water planning and management actions, and is part of the team developing the Native Fish Recovery Strategy.
Saturday 5 September:
How Watertrust Australia is improving flows in the Upper Murrumbidgee: rethinking decision-making in water management with Andy Lowes
Since joining Watertrust Australia in 2025, Andy has focused on bringing people together to improve decision-making in water management. Previously, he worked with the Australian River Restoration Centre, advocating for the waterways of the ACT region, sharing the latest science from across the Murray–Darling Basin, strengthening engagement with First Nations, and supporting mentoring and leadership programs across the water sector. With more than a decade of experience delivering environmental water in the southern Murray–Darling Basin, Andy is passionate about working with governments, First Nations, scientists, community groups, and local people to improve the health of our rivers. A lifelong Canberran, Andy has a deep connection to the region's waterways, which has inspired a career dedicated to caring for rivers and the communities that depend on them.
Saturday 12 September:
Upper Murrumbidgee Demonstration Reach overview of fish monitoring and conservation in the ACT with Matthew Breitzel.
Matt has been working in Aquatic ecology and fisheries for 25 years, primarily in ACT, NSW and Victoria. His primary role is the management of the ACT's conservation and recreational fisheries. This includes research monitoring and recovery of the threatened fish and crayfish species of the ACT. Matt has a lifelong passion for the aquatic world and has been fishing since childhood. Matt attended Tuggeranong College before tertiary studies at the ANU and University of Canberra focusing on the threatened freshwater fish genetics. He has worked in the local area and more broadly for both Government and private industry and currently works for the ACT Office of Nature Conservation.
Group Stitching Activity at Grand Day Out, Saturday 26 September, 11am – 1pm
Through collective stitching and sewing, participants will combine coiled woven circles made by the community, to create a textile surface, ready for attachment to the metal armature. Free all welcome.
Community Fishing Day and Carp Off, Saturday 7 November, 9am – 12pm.
Facilitated by Harry Davey and Ozfish, participants can go head-to-head, competing to catch the biggest Carp of the day. Enjoy fishing while helping to reduce the damaging impact of the Carp species and assisting Cod to recover in Lake Tuggeranong. The day will include prizes for the biggest fish, live music, a community BBQ, and the offical launch of Mangi. Free, all welcome.
Offical Launch at the ACT Craft and Design Festival, Saturday 7 November, 11am.
Mangi will be situated on the shores of Lake Tuggeranong where Murray Cod live. The sculpture is a feature of the 2026 Craft + Design Canberra Festival, who generously supported this community art program and the Weaving Waters: Mangi the Murray Cod program. The making of Mangi is a celebrates community art making as a way of drawing attention to the environment. Tuggeranong Arts Centre is delighted to be part of the 2026 Craft + Design Canberra Festival from 7 – 15 November 2026.
Acknowledgments
This program is a part of the 2026 Craft + Design Canberra Festival. To find out more about the Festival, please visit the website, follow the Festival on Instagram and Facebook, and sign up to the newsletter.
