Botanic gardens-bound: ‘Moobird’ joins the herd

By Max Stainkamph

Sep 5, 2022

Birds of a feather: Nandi, 8, Chayton, 7, and mum Mandy Charquero. Photo by Megan Fisher

Shepparton has had a new cow added to its Moooving Art Herd, and potentially lit the flame for two budding artists to add more in coming years.

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‘Moobird’ will begin its life as part of the herd at the Shepparton Visitors Centre at the Shepparton Art Museum before eventually moving to be the Shepparton botanic gardens’ first cow.

Greater Shepparton City Council visitor economy development and digital officer Jessica Watt said it tied in nicely with a display at the visitor centre made by Friends of the Australian Botanic Gardens Shepparton.

“They’re very excited at the botanic gardens. They haven’t figured out exactly where it’s going,” she said.

Proud: Nandi Charquero points to one of the birds she painted. Photo by Megan Fisher

“There’s more than 90 in the herd now.”

Mandy Charquero was the artist who put it all together, but said her children Nandi and Chayton helped design some of the birds and chose which ones should go on the cow.

She said it was nice the cow would end up at the gardens.

“The botanical gardens actually inspired it, but when we went there we got a brochure on the way out and it was informative,” she said.

“We got thinking and it went from there.”

She said she had loved having her children involved.

“They had A4 paper, traced it out and labelled it and we stuck it up with Blu Tack and from that I got carbon paper on their design; what’s on the cow, it’s exactly what they put together,” she said.

Nandi said she loved being involved and putting the cow together.