Vital Statistics and the Moreton Bay City Council this page will document the research and
development of an experimental dance work to be presented in 2027.
living as open process document i invite you to witness the process of drafting something non perfect.
Recently, Ive had the pleasure of meeting some incredible women. With thanks to the City of Moreton Bay Council I was given some supported time to get out there and meet with locals in my area that have an interest in or some relationship to goats...
its started with this advert.....
To which I received a collection of responses. Responses came primarily from women which initially I thought nothing of and which I now have come to understand is a thing that really reflects the characteristics of this animal's way of being.
I met first with Sandra, a pygmy goat keeper in the surrounds of Mount Glourious, an incredibly warm hearted and welcoming woman. She welcomes me into her place with open arms. We sit and talk in the paddock with the 24 strong herd of females. Over the course of an hour we get to know each other, she shares her stories of how she came to connect with the animal, the challenges she faces and why she does it. We exchange our observations of them in our lives.
Sandra buys and breeds them but never sells them for their market value. What she says strikes me deeply. Ultimately she keeps them as they see her for who she is, someone warm and caring to connect with, she says ‘they sit with you, not just because you feed them, but because they wish to be close’.
A common conversation I have with my mother in recent days is her feeling as a woman slowly but surely disappearing into the background noise of the world, like a car engine or air traffic on a high street in the city. She often describes a process of aging that feels like people around you are going selectively blind . This conversation with Sandra (close to my mothers age) reminded me of the weight of aging as women and its relationality to connection. How the observation of our bodies changes the view of society. how our worth is estimated by our sacrifice . The sacrifice of our bodies be it for our procreation or our ambition. Here in these goats ,in this symbiosis I saw how they allow the presence of her body to be seen in the connection they have.
These animals, this connection, this collective being and sharing of energy gave Sandra shape, grounded her existence in a deep living presence. An immense and overwhelming feeling of reciprocity. The justice brought into their worlds by each other allowed all of them to live with themselves, to feel the feeling of loss, grief, and care. To enmesh themselves . to embed themselves. to live .
I followed Sandra one weekend to the Beenleigh Show, where she was presenting some of her pygmies alongside other women of various ages and experiences. This show, albeit small, brought together a community of people from across south east Queensland.
As I spoke to each of them, they shared stories of how they came to be with their animals, most of which google would describe as ‘Pasture Ornaments’ or non consumable farm breeds. They describe the naming process, the breeding process, the animals that they have given their families, they stood so proudly next to each of their goats. They tell me that these animals give their lives meaning, humor, responsibility and connection to others. The show brought together so many people that live regionally that share similar experiences. They are bound by a shared sense of connection and pride in their goat journey.
I speak to the judge, a tall bearded man who tells me he only came to judge goats accidentally.
He throws out some terms such as :
YARD BLINDNESS - when people think theirs goats are the best and become blind to reality
ANGULATION - term used to describe the structure of a goat
ROBUSTNESS - term that refers to the preferable workable feature of a goats structure
Below are some images various moments from the Beenliegh Show that give an insight into this research
audio experiments