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| Imagine The Future Inc's digital re-interpretation of a traditional possum skin cloak, 1996. |
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| Digital composite created by Csaba Szamosy from photographs by project partners. Concept developed by the project team, including Merrill Findlay, Richard Lee, Rebecca Kaye and Fillipa Shubb. |
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| Traditional owners of the basalt plain wrapped in possum skin cloaks superimposed upon one of their clan designs. |
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| Digital composite by Csaba Szamosy for Imagine The Future Inc, 1996, created from images by Fred Kruger, c.1870, and a design copied, under supervision, from a pre-contact Kulin shield. |
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Archaeological deposits near the confluence of Arundel Creek and the Maribyrnong River at Keilor, and at other sites, suggest that people have been telling stories on Victoria's basalt plain for many thousands of years.
The traditional owners of the plain sang and danced their stories around their fires; painted them onto their own bodies, and onto the walls of their caves and rock shelters; wove them into baskets made from flax lilies and reeds; carved them into their shields and boomerangs; and incised them into the kangaroo and possum skins from which they manufactured their fur-lined winter cloaks.
The marsupial skins were stretched, dried, incised with traditional clan designs, coloured with ochres and charcoal and then finely stitched together with animal sinews, or thread made from plant fibres. Unfortunately very few of these beautifully crafted garments remain from pre-contact times, but contemporary descendents of the first peoples continue to manufacture cloaks from kangaroo and possum skins and proudly wear as an expression of their cultural survival.
Digital possum skin cloak
In 1996-97 Imagine The Future Inc digitally re-interpreted the traditional possum skin cloak to honour the basalt plain’s first story tellers and the stories they told, and to acknowledge the many conflicting stories that have been exchanged across the plain since the British invasion two hundred years ago. Stories about the bioregion's diverse pasts, presents and possible futures have been 'incised' into the virtual skins of this cloak as pixels rather than lines drawn with bone needles or stone blades, and are presented as a series of digital composite images rather than traditional clan designs.
The virtual cloak and its individual skins was composed by Csaba Szamosy from hundreds of images contributed by project partners. The overall concept was inspired by two remaining possum skin cloaks in the Museum Victoria, and developed by the 1996 project team in consultation with residents of the bioregion and members of the Wurundjeri Tribal Land Compensation and Cultural Heritage Council. Imagine The Future Inc gratefully acknowledges their support and patience, and the support of curatorial staff of the Museum of Victoria.
Exhibition catalogue
Individual 'skins' from Imagine The Future Inc's virtual possum skin cloak are exhibited now in the Redreaming gallery. The photographs and drawings used in composing the digital composites are gratefully acknowledged below. All images were generously contributed free of charge by the project partners.
Traditional owners of the plain
The following images were used for this composite. (Story)
Traditional landowners, (probably Wurundjeri) wearing possum skin cloaks, taken by colonial photographer Fred Kruger c. 1870, somewhere around Melbourne. This photograph was contributed by the State Library of Victoria and the Victoria Museum, with the permission from the Wurundjeri Tribal Land Compensation and Cultural Heritage Council.
A Kulin design adapted by Imagine The Future Inc’s consultant artist, Csaba Szamosy, from a clan pattern incised into a traditional Kulin shield believed to have been manufactured in pre-European days, or before the full impact of European colonisation was felt by the indigenous peoples of Victoria. The design was copied at the Museum of Victoria under the supervision of Bill Nicholson, Chairperson of the Wurundjeri Tribal Land Compensation and Cultural Heritage Council, and Indigenous Studies curator Mark Grist. The design remains the cultural property of the Kulin people and is subject to a moral rights agreement.
Native grassland communities
The following images were used in this digital composite about the grasslands of the basalt plain. (Story)
A brush-tailed possum, one of many possums inhabiting the Footscray campus of Victoria University, by Mike Martin for the University. The skins of innumerable generations of this specie were used by Kulin people to make their traditional possum skin cloaks.
Eastern Barred Bandicoot, Parameles gunnii, by Ian McCann, contributed from the McCann Collection, Department of Natural Resources and Environment. This bandicoot is now endangered but is being bred in sanctuaries and zoos, including Werribee Open Range Zoo, for re-introduction into the 'wild' in carefully prepared areas.
Five emus, Dromaius novaehollandia, by James Ross, contributed by Victorian National Parks Association.
Australian bustard, Ardeotis australis, by Ian McCann, contributed from the McCann Collection, Department of Natural Resources and Environment. This bird is endangered nationally and is extinct within the project area.
Bush Thicknee, Burhilius magnirostris, by Ian McCann, contributed from the McCann Collection, Department of Natural Resources and Environment. The Thicknee is considered a vulnerable species in Victoria and is now extinct within the project area.
The Plains Wanderer, Pedionomus borquatus, by Tom Wheller for the Victorian National Parks Association. The Plains Wanderer is listed on Schedule 2 of the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 as a protected species.
Stipa grass by Vanessa Craigee for the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria.
A remnant herb field by John Seebeck for the Victorian Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria.
Common Everlastings, Chrysocephalum apiculatum, by James Ross for the Victorian National Parks Association.
Blue Devils, Eryngium ovinim, by James Ross for the National Parks Association of Victoria.
Conservation burning of remnant grassland by James Ross for the Victorian National Parks Association. The Kulin people used 'firestick farming' to manage the grasslands for many thousands of years. Contemporary botanists now recognise the wisdom of this practice and recommend regular controlled burning to maintain the health of the few remaining grassland ecosystems.
Red gums in grassy woodlands near Bannockburn, by James Ross for the Victorian National Parks Association.
Eucalypts in grassy woodlands near Bannockburn, by James Ross for the Victorian National Parks Association.
Freshwater wetlands
The following images were used in this digital composite about freshwater wetland ecosystems of the basalt plain. (Story)
Kulin men (probably Wautherong) in a traditional bark canoe. This photograph is believed to have been taken on the Barwon River in the late nineteenth century. It was contributed to the project by Geelong Historical Archives for the City of Greater Geelong.
White Faced Heron contributed by Parks Victoria.
Sacred kingfisher contributed by Parks Victoria.
Black duck contributed by Parks Victoria.
Hoary Headed Grebe on her nest, contributed by Parks Victoria.
Nesting Brolga, Girus rubicindos, photographed by Ian McCann, from the McCann Collection, Department of Natural Resources and Environment.
Nesting black swan contributed by Parks Victoria.
Redgums, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, near Geelong by Mark Trengove, Geelong Indigenous Nursery.
Remnant wetland on the Little River rail reserve, by James Ross for the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.
Saltwater wetlands
The following images were used in this digital composite about coastal wetland ecosystems of the basalt plain.
White Headed Stilt contributed by Parks Victoria.
Pelicans on a mud island in Port Phillip Bay, by Patrick O'Callahan for the Marine Discovery Centre at Queenscliff.
Rednecked Stints in coastal wetlands, contributed by Melbourne Water
A Kulin shell midden on the beach at Point Lillias, near Werribee, surrounded by coastal vegetation, by Mark Trengove, Geelong Indigenous Nursery. As well as being culturally significant to Kulin people because of the middens and other archaeological sites, Point Lillias is also an important feeding ground for migratory birds, and the seasonal habitat of one of Australia's most endangered species, the Orange Bellied Parrot.
Young mangroves and salt marsh on a mud island in Port Phillip Bay by Patrick O'Callaghan for the Marine Discovery Centre at Queenscliff.
The estuary of the Little River, showing mudflats, salt marsh and saltbush vegetation, by Mark Trengove, Geelong Indigenous Nursery
A tidal rock pool and lichen covered basalt boulders within the City of Hobsons Bay, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Guano streaked basalt rocks and tidal rock pool within the City of Hobsons Bay by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Marine communities
The following images were used in this digital composite about the marine communities of Port Phillip Bay. (Story)
Seals in Port Phillip Bay photographed by Steve Frlan. The coast of Victoria was once home to many thousands of seals and sea elephants, but in the late eighteenth century European and North American sealing fleets began arriving, and within two to three decades seal numbers were reduced to near extinction levels. Seal populations are now increasing, and it is no longer rare to see seals in Port Phillip Bay. The sealers also violently disrupted the lives of the indigenous coastal peoples, particularly the women, many of whom were kidnapped and used as slave labour in the sealing camps.
Fan coral at the entrance to Port Phillip Bay by Steve Frlan.
A banjo shark in Port Phillip Bay by Steve Frlan.
Mussels off the coast of Point Lillias near Werribee, by Steve Frlan.
Sea urchin in Port Phillip Bay by Steve Frlan.
Starfish in Port Phillip Bay by Steve Frlan.
Fish in Port Phillip Bay by Steve Frlan.
Jellyfish in Port Phillip Bay by Steve Frlan.
Snapper, Pagrus auratus, one of the primary commercial species inhabiting Port Phillip Bay, photographed by Brian Gilkes for Fisheries Victoria.
Invasion and colonisation
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| Digital composite by Csaba Szamosy for Imagine The Future Inc, 1996, created from a traditional Kulin design, a detail from Batman's treaty and a detail from a colonial painting by an unidentified artist. . |
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The following images were used in this digital composite about first contact on the basalt plain between the traditional owners and European invaders. (Story)
Watercolour contributed by Geelong Historical Archives and photographed at Geelong Municipal Library by Merrill Findlay, with the permission of Chief Archivist. The white man in marsupial skins in the right of the painting is William Buckley, the escaped convict who lived with the Wathaurung clans of the Kulin nation for thirty years before he returned to his own people.
Kulin shield design adapted by artist Csaba Szamosy from a clan design incised into a traditional Kulin shield that is believed to have been manufactured in pre-European days or before the full impact of European colonisation was felt by indigenous peoples in Victoria. The design was copied at the Museum of Victoria under the supervision of Bill Nicholson, Chairperson of the Wirundjeri Association, and Indigenous Studies curator Mark Grist. It remains the cultural property of the Kulin people and is subject to a moral rights agreement.
A copy of the 'treaty' land speculator John Batman 'signed' with Kulin people in 1835 on behalf of the Port Phillip Association, to 'purchase' all the land from what is now Melbourne to the Bellarine Peninsula and inland as far as Gisborne. The facsimile of the treaty was contributed to the project by John Chadderton, Victoria University.
Arrival of sheep and cattle
The following images were used in this digital composite about the pastoral industry on the basalt plain. (Story)
Cattle believed to be on their way to the Angliss Meatworks in the early twentieth century, contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
An early photograph of pastoral workers on the Chirnside property, Werribee Park, outside their canvas accommodation, contributed by the State Library of Victoria from the Wood Collection.
An early pastoral scene showing healthy eucalypt woodlands along the Werribee River at Werribee Plains. This image was contributed by the State Library of Victoria from its Hood collection.
Merino sheep behind a post and rail fence at Werribee Plains, the pastoral estate of the Chirnside Brothers, contributed by the State Library of Victoria from its Hood collection. Note the eucalypts killed by ring-barking on the far left, and the already cleared paddock on the right.
Ploughing the plain
The following images were used in this digital composite about farming the basalt plain. (Story)
A man believed to be one of the Chirnside brothers who owned Werribee Plains, standing in a cereal crop. The image was contributed by the State Library of Victoria from its Hood Collection.
Harvesting the wheat with a Sunshine Harvester and horse team. This innovative harvester was manufactured in the McKay foundry at Sunshine in Melbourne's west -- indeed the suburb was named for the machine. The photograph was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A family group in front of the Austral Grain and Produce sheds in Western Melbourne, in the early twentieth century, contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A 'smoko' or lunch beak during what looks like hay making, somewhere in what is now western Melbourne, contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Cutting chaff in the days of steam and horse power, contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A wall built from basalt boulders ejected during a volcanic eruption tens of thousands, or even millions of years ago. Photograph contributed by Parks Victoria.
Ways of seeing the plain
The following images were used in this digital composite about the different ways people of different cultural backgrounds see the basalt plain. (Story)
Kulin design adapted by Imagine The Future Inc’s consultant artist, Csaba Szamosy, from a clan design incised into a traditional Kulin shield believed to have been manufactured in pre-European days, or before the full impact of European colonisation had been experienced felt by the indigenous people of Victoria. The design was copied at the Museum of Victoria under the supervision of Bill Nicholson, Chairperson of the Wurundjeri Tribal Land Compensation and Cultural Heritage Council, and Indigenous Studies curator Mark Grist. The design remains the cultural property of the Kulin people and is subject to a moral rights agreement.
A nineteenth century map of the Werribee River and coastline by an unidentified cartographer of European descent, contributed by Parks Victoria.
An aerial view, by an unidentified photographer, showing coastal wetlands, public land and encroaching suburban sprawl, contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A bullock team in front of nineteenth century wooden buildings in the Werribee district, contributed by the State Library of Victoria from its Wood Collection.
Staff of Werribee Park with the historic mansion in the background, contributed by Parks Victoria. No date available.
Settlers of Scottish descent posing on the veranda of a weatherboard farmhouse after a rabbit shooting expedition. Note their homemade cartridges. This photograph, dated at around 1900, was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Grades V-VII at Maribyrnong Primary School, 1933, contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A pine tree on the City of Hobsons Bay foreshore by Merrill Findlay, 1996. The pine is one of many exotic species introduced by European settlers to make the basalt plain more culturally familiar.
The Timeball Tower at Point Gellibrand, Williamstown, by City of Hobsons Bay's environmental officer, Andrew Shannon. This tower, made from local basalt, has become one of Hobsons Bay's primary cultural icons.
Late twentieth-century grave stones in Werribee cemetery commemorating the lives of people of Greek descent, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
The parterre, or ornamental garden, in the grounds of Werribee Park mansion in the mid-1990s, contributed by Parks Victoria.
Unidentified ruins in a paddock on the basalt plain, on the site, perhaps, of a long-demolished farm house, contributed by Melbourne’s Living Museum of the West.
Domesticated Bantam fowls at Point Cook homestead, an historic building near Werribee, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
European domesticated geese at the entrance to the grounds of Point Cook homestead near Werribee by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Industrialising the plain
The following images were used in the digital composite about the economic development of the basalt plain. (Story)
An etching of a nineteenth century meatworks on the Maribyrnong River, by an unidentified artist. Factories like this discharged all their solid and liquid waste, including vast quantities of offal, bones and blood, into the river. The factory owners protested vehemently when local people and public health authorities declared that the region's waterways should not be used as sewers. This image was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
An auction of farm machinery outside a McKay showroom in Melbourne's West. Note the board walks and the muddy condition of the unsealed street. This undated image was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A bank, in the provincial city of Geelong, built from basalt, or bluestone, mined from one of the lava flows on the plain. This bank would have been one of the financial institutions that financed the wool industry which was central to the economic development of the basalt plain, the dispossession of the indigenous peoples, and the destruction of the native grasslands. This undated photograph was contributed by the Geelong Historical Archives on behalf of the City of Geelong.
The Maize Factory on the Maribyrnong River contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
The Schutt and Barrie Flour Mill at Footscray contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
The silos at Sunshine, painted by artist Stephen Bush. This image was contributed by the City of Brimbank. The painting is now part of Council's permanent collection of work by local artists.
The clipper Timaru moored at Geelong, contributed by the Geelong Historical Archives on behalf of the City of Geelong.
An oil tanker moored in front of a tank farm on the Yarra River. This photograph was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A scallop boat moored at Queenscliff, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996. Scallop dredging was banned for 12 months by fishing industry authorities in 1996 because of concern about the decline in scallop stocks.
Shipping containers stored in Melbourne's docklands, which are now being re-developed as urban space. This photograph was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A factory shed near Williamstown railway station within the City of Hobsons Bay, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996.
A truck using the Princes Highway between Melbourne and Geelong in October 1996, by Merrill Findlay.
Woodchips stockpiled for export at the Corio Bay port facility within the City of Greater Geelong, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996.
Corio Bay port facilities within the City of Greater Geelong, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996. Note the stockpiled woodchips in the background.
The fuel tank at Point Gellibrand at Williamstown, City of Hobsons Bay, by Merrill Findlay.
An electricity sub-station near Williamstown railway station, City of Hobsons Bay, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996.
Chimney stack of the Newport power station by Andrew Shannon for the City of Hobsons Bay.
Altona Chemical Complex by Andrew Shannon, environmental planner with the City of Hobsons Bay.
View of Spotswood, City of Hobsons Bay, from the top of West Gate Bridge across the Yarra River estuary.
Working the plain
The following images were used in this digital composite about working for a living on the basalt plain. (Story)
Workers at a Footscray bluestone quarry. The basalt from such quarries was turned into cobbles to pave the streets and lanes of Melbourne and Geelong, and was the raw material from which many of Melbourne and Geelong's now-historic buildings were constructed. Bluestone quarried by workers such as those shown in this photo was also sent as ballast to Great Britain in the nineteenth century, and used to line stretches of the River Thames. Basalt slabs are now being used by Melbourne City Council to pave the city's contemporary footpaths. Photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Workers on the beef line at the Angliss meatworks at Footscray contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Workers in a barrel factory at Footscray. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Workers in an unidentified spinning mill in Melbourne's West. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Workers in one of the many clothing factories that once employed many hundreds of people in the textile industry in Melbourne's West and in Geelong in the late nineteenth and early/mid twentieth centuries. Undated photograph was contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Footscray wharf on the Maribyrnong River. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
An Albion truck being loaded at Footscray wharf. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
A worker in a Footscray munitions factory during World War II. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
'Stan O.' operating a pipe cutting machine in a metal workshop at Werribee. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
The management team of the McKay Massey Ferguson factory at Sunshine. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Workers socialising in a public hall. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Workers in their mess hall. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
Scallop boats at Queenscliff by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Workers at the Williamstown shipyards by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Applied science teachers and students at Victoria University by Mike Martin for Victoria University.
A professional cook tossing stir-fried vegetable in a wok, by Mike Martin for Victoria University.
A masseuse in a gym at St Albans by Mike Martin for Victoria University.
A practitioner of Chinese traditional medicine by Mike Martin for Victoria University.
Computer operator by Mike Martin for Victoria University.
A smallgoods shop worker almost hidden behind jars of pickles, by Carmen Stewart.
Urbanising the plain
The following images were used in this digital composite about the urbanisation/suburbanisation of the basalt plain. (Story)
A rough, purpose-drawn graphic by Merrill Findlay based on land-use maps of Geelong and the western region of Melbourne. The yellow represents space set aside for cars; green represents public open space; brown represents waste disposal; pink represents public facilities, including schools and train lines; and the purple represents the houses and gardens of suburbia.
Teenagers in West Sunshine, photographed by Carmen Stewart, 1996.
Two children in the care of the Salvation Army in Sunshine with a young friend from St Albans catching freshwater crayfish or 'yabbies' in Pipemakers Park near the Maribyrnong River, by Carmen Stewart, 1996.
Rental accommodation in Melbourne's West by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
A 'Mediterranean baroque' house in Melbourne's West by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Workers cottages now subject to the process of gentrification in Williamstown, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Public housing in Melbourne's West by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Weatherboard cottages in Melbourne's West photographed by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Urban consolidation within the municipality of Maribyrnong by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Nineteenth century house in Williamstown made out of local bluestone or basalt by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
The derelict Massey Ferguson building at Sunshine, by Carmen Stewart in 1996. This building is on the site of the McKay factory where the Sunshine Harvester was manufactured. Sunshine was named after this famous machine.
Peopling the plain
Snapshots of local people by Merrill Findlay (1996), Mark Trengove and Melbourne Market Authority. (Story)
Horticulturing the plain
The following images were used in the digital composite about the horticultural industries of the basalt plain. (Story)
Lettuces being loaded for market. Note the wooden spokes and iron rims on the wheels of the truck. Undated photograph contributed by Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.
People weeding rows of young tobacco plants. This photograph is believed to have been taken around Werribee in the 1930s and was contributed Melbourne's Living Museum of the West. Note the still-uncleared native vegetation on the far side of the fence.
A tractor being used to prepare ground for next season's vegetable crops at Werribee South, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Portelli's Confectionery Store at Werribee South, 1996, by Merrill Findlay. This store also sells fuel and general merchandise to service the surrounding market gardens, many of which are owned by families of Italian, Greek and Macedonian descent.
Raised beds of onion seedlings at Werribee South, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
A crop of cabbages almost ready for harvest at Werribee South, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Packing sheds and crates on a horticultural property at Werribee South, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
A display of vegetable produce grown on the basalt plain contributed by Melbourne Market Authority at Footscray.
Wildflowers of the basalt plain
All the flowers in this composite -- with the exception of, the exotic artichoke thistle, Cynara cardunccus, are natives of the basalt plain. They were contributed by Victorian National Parks Association and the Ian McCann Collection, Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria. (Story)
Asperula cenferta (common woodruff) by Phil Ingamells.
Bossiaea prostrata (creeping bossiaea) by Phil Ingamells.
Brunonia Australis (blue pincushion) by Phil Ingamells.
Burchadia umbellata (milkmaids) by Phil Ingamells.
Caesia calliantha (blue grass-lily) by Phil Ingamells.
Chrysocephalum apilculatum (yellow button) by Phil Ingamells.
Comesperma polycaloides (small milkwort) by Phil Ingamells.
Cynara cardunccus (artichoke thistle), an exotic weed, by Phil Ingamells.
Dianella longifolia (purple flax lily) by Phil Ingamells.
Diuris puncata (purple diuris) by Ian McCann.
Diuris lanceolata (golden moths orchid) by Phil Ingamells.
Drosera peltata (tall sundew) by Phil Ingamells.
Einadia nutans (nodding saltbush) by Phil Ingamells.
Eryngium ovinim (blue devil) by James Ross.
Eryngium vesiculosum (puckfoot) by Phil Ingamells.
Geranium retrosum (grassland cranebill) by Phil Ingamells.
Goodenia heteroman (spreading goodenia) by Phil Ingamells.
Hallordgis heterophylla (vaned raspwort) by Phil Ingamells.
Lobelia pratioides (poison lobelia) by Phil Ingamells.
Pimelea curruflora (curved rice flower) by Phil Ingamells.
Ptilotus macrosephalus (feather head) by James Ross.
Ptilotus spathalatuss (pussy tails) by Phil Ingamells.
Pyenosarus chrysanthes (golden billbuttons) by Phil Ingamells.
Stylidium graminfolium by Phil Ingamells.
Thelimytra nuda (plain sun-orchid) by Ian McCann.
Wahlenbergia comminis (tufted bluebell) by Phil Ingamells.
Wahlenbergia stucta (tall bluebell) by Phil Ingamells.
Wurmbea dioica (tiny puckweed) by Phil Ingamells.
Rehabilitating habitats
The following images were used in this digital composite about restoring and rehabilitating habitats on the basalt plain. (Story)
Eastern Barred Bandicoot, Parameles gunnii, by Anthony Dufty for Werribee Open Range Zoo. This bandicoot is now endangered but is being bred in captivity for re-introduction into the 'wild' in carefully restored habitats.
Red kangaroos at Werribee Open Range Zoo by D.Pollock contributed by the Zoo. These large marsupials inhabit drier more inland areas in the wild, and generally only come into the grasslands of the basalt plain during times of severe drought.
Purple swamphens at the Western Treatment Plant, Werribee, contributed by Melbourne Water.
Yellow billed spoonbill at the Western Treatment Plant, Werribee, contributed by Melbourne Water.
School students revegetating Truganina Swamp at Laverton during Arbor Week 1996, by Andrew Shannon, environmental planner with the City of Hobsons Bay.
Black swans with West Gate Bridge in the background, contributed by Parks Victoria.
Wombat contributed by Parks Victoria.
Grasslands and remnant eucalypts, including an ancient stag, on private property, photographed from the Geelong to Queenscliff road by Merrill Findlay, October 1996. Dead trees such as this old stag provide vital nesting hollows for many species, including parrots and possums.
Restored saltmarsh at Altona, City of Hobsons Bay, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996.
Lichen covered basalt boulders in a rock pool at Altona, City of Hobsons Bay, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996.
Sustaining the plain
The following images were used in this digital composite about options for socially and ecologically sustainable futures on Victoria's basalt plain. (Story)
Concept drawing by architects David Craven and Philip Snowdon, showing how the Mobil tank farm at Altona could be retro-fitted as an urban village for the twenty first century. This drawing raises many interesting issues about built forms for a post fossil-fuel future.
Wind generator at Black Rock on the Bass Strait coast near Geelong, by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Drawing contributed by the Urban Design Unit of the Victorian Department of Infrastructure, to emphasise the importance of bicycles, walking, and community life in a more sustainable urban future.
Details from a concept drawing for The River Project to redevelop the banks of the Maribyrnong River at Footscray, made available by the City of Maribyrnong and photographed by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
Detail from a concept drawing of the proposed Buddhist temple on the banks of the Maribyrnong River, made available by City of Maribyrnong and photographed by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
A detail of proposed mermaid artwork from a concept drawing for The River Project made available by City of Maribyrnong and photographed by Merrill Findlay, 1996.
View across farming land to the You Yang range from the Princes Highway between Melbourne and Geelong, by Merrill Findlay, October 1996.
Imagine The Future Inc's re-interpreted possum skin cloak was previewed at the Maribyrnong Town Hall, Footscray, and the Wyndham Civic Centre, Werribee, in June 1997. The composite 'skins' have now become an integral part of this Redreaming the plain e-journal.
Copyright Imagine The Future Inc. and Australian Film Commission, 2002.
Text by Merrill Findlay for ITF.
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