Beyond the Table: The Dinner Party Reimagined  is a reimagining of a traditional dinner party, with a nod to 1970s nostalgia and celebrating one of the key gathering spaces in our homes, the humble dining table.

The installation is on display at Manningham Art Gallery as part of Melbourne Design Week, Australia's premier design festival featuring events across Melbourne and regional Victoria.

Emerging Manningham artist Isobel Goodman responds to and selects works from Manningham Council’s ‘Potters Cottage Collection,’ a grouping of vessels created by the Potters Cottage co-operative. The co-operative was founded in Warrandyte in 1958 to advocate for and sell handmade functional Australian pottery.

Goodman hand builds her signature papier mâché and plaster sculptures – organic and abstracted forms to reference a dinner party table setting – vases, cutlery, plates, and candlesticks that play off and create a contemporary juxtaposition against the Potters Cottage vessels from the 1970s. 

Surrounding the central dining table presentation is a display of paintings from local Manningham artist Jade Piltz. These works depict bright, layered and abstract domestic objects that encapsulate the exhibition’s celebration of communal gathering and ritual. 

During Melbourne Design Week (15-25 May) visitors can take home a flower to celebrate this exhibition. 

Artist Bios: 
Isobel Goodman was recently awarded a Bachelor of Fine Art from the University of Melbourne. Her practice focuses on sculptural exploration and the body’s navigation of space and environment through the perspective of APD (Auditory Processing Disorder). She invites audiences to examine their relationship between the physical self and how we navigate the world around us.

Jade Piltz is a Warrandyte painter and ceramist. She is fascinated by our innate search for belonging, our desire for meaning and relationships to change and transition. Using mark making, she explores the ways our interactions with surrounding spaces and objects, narrate and inform our lives.

This Exhibition was supported by Gabriela Mello, owner and director of Warrandyte Pottery, through artist mentorship and technical and conceptual support and curated by Lucy Beattie Hughes, Manningham Council’s Creative Industries Officer.

Jade Piltz, Alone, Together (detail), 2024,  acrylic on canvas, 168 x 122cm. Image courtesy of the artist. Photo by: Emily Brookfield.
 

 
Melbourne Design Week is Australia’s largest and leading annual design festival and takes place from 15 to 25 May 2025.

The 2025 program spans 11 days of 350+ events, exhibitions, talks, and installations throughout metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria.

Melbourne Design Week is a vital platform for emerging and established creative practitioners, offering the Australian design community and audiences the opportunity to engage with a diverse program of talks, tours, exhibitions, installations, and workshops. Melbourne Design Week is an initiative of the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria and is curated and delivered by the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV).

Visit designweek.melbourne to view the full program.


 

Come along to this indoor Go Soccer Mums program.

Designed specifically for women, GO Soccer Mums is all about having fun, meeting new people, and learning basic football skills in a social, judgement-free environment.

It's not just for mums - but for all women, from all walks of life! It doesn't matter if you have never kicked a football before. Absolutely no experience in necessary - anybody can take part.

Mums are welcome to bring their young children or babies if required. There will be a comfortable space for feeding and changing babies. Prams are welcome in the stadium.

#ManninghamGirlsCan
 

In partnership with Manningham Council, EV invites Seniors of Manningham to enjoy a day outing to pick some summer berries and cherries at Blue Hill, Silvan.

The event is available to residents of Manningham aged 65 years and over. Included is bus transport to and from the berry farm, morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. Attendees can choose to purchase some of the berries at farm prices.

Please BYO hat, sunscreen and water bottle for this outing.

Please note: date may be subject to change, dependent on weather.

For more information and to book, please call 9870 7822 or email elizabeth.mcfarlin@ev.org.au

This online webinar will provide tips on creating healthy, affordable lunchboxes for all ages.

We’re partnering with Nutrition Australia for two free online webinars as part of Healthy Lunchbox Week - 9 to 15 February 2025.

• Healthy lunchbox tips for kindergarten and school starters
• Budget-friendly lunchbox tips

Learn how to:

• balance key food groups
• keep grocery costs down
• save time with simple prep
• change it up with a recipe and leftover ideas.

Presented by Monash Council, City of Kingston, Knox City Council, Manningham Council, and Maroondah City Council.

Want tips on how to be your most stylish self in the most sustainable way? Award-winning eco stylist and educator, Nina Gbor of Eco Styles will share her restyling tips.

Learn how to stylishly (re)use the items in your closet to look and feel amazing with any size and on any budget, while reducing your carbon footprint and textile waste.
Nina will also talk about:

• how to find your personal style
• how to find preloved treasures in op shops and online

About Nina Gbor
As the founder of Eco Styles, Nina Gbor is an award-winning sustainability advocate, ethical fashion speaker, climate activist, writer and educator. 
Nina has a master’s degree in International Development and is a former sustainable fashion tutor in short courses at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. She coined the phrase ‘get off the fashion trendmill’ which means individuality and self-knowledge should be the premise for consuming clothing, not fashion trends.

Follow Nina on Insta @eco.styles for inspiration on secondhand and sustainable style hacks.

Maroondah City Council is hosting this event in collaboration with Knox City Council, Whitehorse City Council, Yarra Ranges Council, and Manningham Council.

Come along to this webinar to hear from the founder of Plastic Free July, Rebecca Prince-Ruiz.

Rebecca will talk about how this inspiring movement grew from just a handful of people, to 140 million people worldwide.

Learn how you can be part of this community change as Rebecca shares solutions and stories from people making small steps to reduce plastic waste. Together we can make a real difference in Victoria in 2023, beyond the plastic bans.

In this webinar discover easy and practical ways to make your home more energy efficient including draught sealing, insulation, double glazing and appliances. The webinar also covers energy monitors, how to use a thermal camera and finding the best energy deal.

Our presenter, Ian Moxon, is a seasoned sustainability consultant with over 15 years of experience in this field. He’ll share his extensive knowledge and valuable industry insights into the benefits of changing to a more energy efficient home.

This event is part of our Inspired Living Series. This series showcases an exciting range of fun and sustainable activities and events for all ages, supporting sustainability at home, in the community and at work.

Bookings are essential. 

Warrandyte Neighbourhood House and the Warrandyte Arts Association will be joining forces to launch National Recycling Week on Sunday 6 November 2022.

This fun community day has been funded by a Manningham Community Grant and will include:

• sustainability workshops and demonstrations
• an exhibition of artwork using recycled materials
• The Repair Café
• Warrandyte Potters
• musical entertainment and theatre
• food and drinks

National Recycling Week, established by Planet Ark in 1996, is held every year during the second week of November.

Excessive consumption is a key driver of environmental change. It points to the need for increased understanding of the environmental impact of everyday items and how we can alter our behaviour and choices. Making our households and communities sustainable will enable us to adapt to a carbon constrained world.

Did you know children consume around 30 per cent of their daily food intake at school? Most of this comes from the contents of their lunchbox.

We’re partnering with Nutrition Australia for two free online webinars as part of Healthy Lunchbox Week - 9 to 15 February 2025.

• Healthy lunchbox tips for kindergarten and school starters
• Budget-friendly lunchbox tips

This online webinar will provide tips and tricks for packing healthy lunchboxes for little ones starting kinder or school.

Learn how to:

• balance key food groups
• keep grocery costs down
• save time with simple prep
• change it up with a recipe and leftover ideas.

Presented by Monash Council, City of Kingston, Knox City Council, Manningham Council, and Maroondah City Council.

Our presenter, Ian Moxon, is a seasoned sustainability consultant with over 15 years of experience in Electric vehicles. He’ll share his extensive knowledge and valuable industry insights into the benefits of electric vehicles.

The information session will cover:

• charging systems, charging times and expanding infrastructure
• distances that Australians usually travel and how the perceived barrier to EVs is dissolving
• battery technologies - innovation is driving higher capacity, less weight, longer life spans, better safety and end of life recycling
• the cost to travel using electricity as a fuel and the impact of a growing electric fleet for our electricity grid
• the various models that are available now, and the many more that will arrive with policy changes and surging demand.

This event is part of our Inspired Living Series. This series showcases an exciting range of fun and sustainable activities and events for all ages, supporting sustainability at home, in the community and at work.

Bookings are essential.

This online program provides an overview of dementia and how to proceed after a diagnosis. The program runs over seven sessions and covers coping with change, relationships and communication, planning for the future and staying healthy.

You will gain knowledge in:

• dementia and related issues such as planning for the future
• strategies for living positively with dementia including support
• the management, reduction and/or prevention of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia.

Suitable for people living with dementia and their family carers and family members. This program is not suitable for professionals employed in the health or aged care sectors.

Dementia Australia's facilitators have specialist dementia knowledge, skills and experience. This program is delivered interactively - you will be encouraged to share your experiences alongside other participants, giving you an opportunity to develop new support networks.

If you register to attend this program you will be contacted by Dementia Australia staff to ensure that the program will meet your needs and that you meet the eligibility requirements.

As part of the MC Square 10 Year Anniversary celebrations, Manningham Art Studios is opening its doors for a range of free art activities to get you inspired for the new year!

Drop into the studios or our marquee in the forecourt between 11.00am and 3.00pm to try your hand at sketching, painting and hand-building with air-drying clay, and see demonstrations by some of our expert tutors.

Suitable for all ages.

Program of events

Join wildlife ecologist John Harris as we undertake a biodiversity survey of 100 Acres Reserve. This community biodiversity survey is part of the global City Nature Challenge (CNC).

How to participate

It is free, easy, and fun to get involved.

Bring your mobile phone or digital camera to take pictures of the wild plants, animals and fungi you see, or make sound recordings of frog or bird calls.

Any observations taken over the four days, need to be uploaded to iNaturalist and included in the City Nature Challenge 2023.

To prepare for the guided walks and talks:

• install the iNaturalist app on your mobile phone and create an iNaturalist account
• make sure your phone battery is fully charged on the day
• wear weather-appropriate clothing, bring a rain/wind-proof jacket, and wear safe, fully-enclosed walking shoes to go in long grass
• bring your own drink bottle and snacks
• become a member of the Melbourne City Nature Challenge project to discover nature in our neighbourhoods

About the City Nature Challenge

The City Nature Challenge runs from Friday 28 April to Monday 1 May 2023.

In this worldwide BioBlitz, cities compete to make the most observations of the most species by the most people.

Manningham is collaborating with over 25 local governments to form the Greater Melbourne project.

Last year Greater Melbourne came 33rd from 445 cities for the number of observations made. Hume City came fourth amongst the other local government areas.

Do you want to learn to skate but don’t know where to start?

Come along to an All Aboard skateboarding session to learn skate skill basics and build confidence in a fun and inclusive environment! 

What you'll learn

You’ll learn about skate skill development, injury prevention, skate park etiquette, equipment maintenance and lots more.

Workshops are led by experienced instructors focusing on building skills in a fun and social environment.

Who can attend

All Aboard skate sessions are open to school-aged children and young people of all genders and abilities. No prior experience is needed.

Come to as many or as few workshops as you like. 

What to bring

Nothing! Skateboards, helmets and padding are all provided. If you have your own equipment and prefer to use that, you can bring it along.

Registrations are required.

These workshops are made possible thanks to Victorian Skateboard Association, and a Manningham Community Partnership Grant.