Thank you for writing this so honestly Annie. I sometimes feel like I'm getting pigeon-holed - and know other artists/writers who do too, by referencing motherhood in our work, its like that is then all we can write/talk about. I know many who feel they have to make work on other themes or areas of their lives to be taken 'seriously'. Including motherhood shouldn't be seen as some kitsch 'niche' category you are either on board with or not. The point you make that we often stop ourselves for fear of this really resonated with me. Also recognising the issues in all of that, as you do so brilliantly here, is really encouraging for me.
I think that we make our best art when it's based on personal experience - and motherhood is such a huge, pivotal shift for us so it makes sense it will feed into our work. If society valued motherhood more, our work on it would also be taken seriously. And we'd feel we can write/make art about it when it feels right, and turn to other themes and subjects when we're ready x
Thank you for writing this so honestly Annie. I sometimes feel like I'm getting pigeon-holed - and know other artists/writers who do too, by referencing motherhood in our work, its like that is then all we can write/talk about. I know many who feel they have to make work on other themes or areas of their lives to be taken 'seriously'. Including motherhood shouldn't be seen as some kitsch 'niche' category you are either on board with or not. The point you make that we often stop ourselves for fear of this really resonated with me. Also recognising the issues in all of that, as you do so brilliantly here, is really encouraging for me.
I think that we make our best art when it's based on personal experience - and motherhood is such a huge, pivotal shift for us so it makes sense it will feed into our work. If society valued motherhood more, our work on it would also be taken seriously. And we'd feel we can write/make art about it when it feels right, and turn to other themes and subjects when we're ready x