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Jarruka (Scrubfowl)

The scrubfowl is a culturally significant Totem to our people. We still dance it in public ceremonies. The scrubfowl dance starts off with two male dancers as scrubfowl characters guarding the nest and eggs.  Then the women dancers come in. They are on the lookout for scrubfowl nests and carry dillybags for the eggs. The women chase the scrubfowl guards away, fill up their dillybags with the precious eggs. At the end, the male scrubfowl dancers join the women again and celebrate the harvest to say thanks for the eggs.

Categories: Bamanga Bubu Ngadimunku Aboriginal Corporation

Name: Laurence Gibson

Language: Kuku Yalanji

Community: Mossman

Biography:

My father is a Kuku Nyungkul man from Schiffon Flat and my mother is a Kuku Yalanji from Mossman Gorge. My mum used to paint at home and she inspired me to become an artist myself. I prefer doing pencil drawings - I’ve been sketching all my life. I like large figure outlines.

 

It was my partner, Vanessa Cannon, who first encouraged me to come with her to Yalanji Arts. I like working with and learning from her. Now, my practice has expanded and I do my line drawings on ceramics (sgrafitto) and create drawings for printing on textiles and paper.

 

My totem is the Cassowary. It was bestowed on me by my Grandfather. He taught me how to dance the Cassowary dance which l sometimes perform for public events. Not only have I performed this sacred dance in Mossman, but across the world in Hong Kong in the 1990s.

 

I’m happy when I can make art. It relaxes me. My main subjects are the cassowary, echidna, dugong, barramundi, scrub fowl, and brush turkey. My main aim is to pass my knowledge onto the younger generations.

 

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