1 min 37 sec

Taken from the documentary Loved Up – Lore of Love (2005)

Original title classification not known – this clip chosen to be PG

A video which normally appears on this page did not load because the Flash plug-in was not found on your computer. You can download and install the free Flash plug-in then view the video. Or you can view the same video as a downloadable MP4 file without installing the Flash plug-in.

Availability of the complete title

Please be aware that this clip may contain the names, images and voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who may now be deceased.

Curator’s clip description

The old women sit in the sand, the younger women next to them. The old women draw the skin system – or the lores of marriage – in the sand. The younger women are being taught the right skin groups from which they can pick a husband.

Curator’s notes

The skin system of Indigenous culture is core to the whole, for through the skin system, bloodlines are kept and strengthened, and the responsibility to land and place are managed. The passing on of this knowledge is what makes any discussion about love, in the Indigenous cultural context, loaded with responsibility, rather than the frivolity represented by popular culture. This documentary is a poetic account of the serious fun of love.

Romaine Moreton, curator

australian screen