M*therhood x Art
A matricentric approach to inclusion in the arts
Through a series of commissions, awards and self-initiated projects, I am developing a body of work curatorial research and creative work exploring m*therhood as it intersects with the arts. This line of inquiry began, for me, in July 2022 via a conversation I hosted with Magdalena Kallenberger of MATERNAL FANTASIES for Culture Collective's International Perspectives series. Watch the recording below.
I am particularly interested in what I have coined, 'divergent m*therhoods', a term I have coined to refer to experiences which expand from the common point of m*therhood and/or birthing, inspired by the term ‘neurodivergent’. ‘Divergent m*therhoods’ essentially refers to the experiences of m*thers who do not exist within the dominant representations and constructs of motherhood, both as a lived experience and as an institution. This dominant culture roughly casts ideal mothers (or at least, the m*thers most represented) as coupled, straight and cis-gendered, neurotypical and non-disabled, mentally ‘well’, white and having children in their 30s. This phrase grew organically in response to my own frustrations with the lack of representation I felt for myself as a genderqueer, young, solo, ADHD m*ther. It includes (but is not limited to), Disabled, d/Deaf and nueordiverse m*thers; global majority m*thers within a Western context; LGBTQ+ m*thers; incarcerated m*thers; young m*thers; single, solo and separated m*thers; step-m*thers, and more.
My current focus is on surveying socially engaged arts project by, with and for m*thers. This is supported by acceptance to the Emerging Curator's Group 2024, financially supported by The Paul Mellon Centre and Tate.
I use the '*' in m*thers to illustrate a gender-inclusive and expansive definition of m*therhood to include all who identify or feel an affinity with motherhood. This includes non-binary people, trans men & trans women, step-mums, non-birth-giving/carrying mothers, bereaved mothers, surrogate mothers & those whose pregnancies were not carried to term.