A Cart, A Girl, and a Goat 1964

This etching by Mordecai Moreh shows a girl in a small cart being pulled by a goat. Moreh was born in Iraq, and much of his work explores his cultural identity as an Iraqi Jew in Israel. In this work, the girl and goat create an interesting tension: childhood innocence versus the realities of labor and life in the Middle East, where goats are a regular part of everyday life. Look at the girl’s eyes: they are knowing and perhaps a bit world-weary, as if she has seen and understands more than most children. The image evokes the feeling of a dream, where familiar things are imbued with symbolic meaning. What does it mean to be uprooted from one’s homeland and to create a sense of belonging in a new country? "A Cart, A Girl, and a Goat," invites us to consider themes of displacement, identity, and the intersection of personal history and cultural heritage.