Press release: 

Art exhibition: A Bundle of Joy : Untold Tales of Motherhood and Oppression

 

Political artist Angela C. Wild is using art as a way to explode the myths around motherhood to reach out to isolated London mothers. Her searing indictment of the way society treats mothers explores how the reality of women's experiences clashes with false societal messages of 'perfection' and domestic bliss.

The art has grown out of the creator's personal experience of motherhood.

 

Angela says: “I needed to make sense of this new, difficult situation I found myself in where I felt trapped, isolated, and with nowhere to turn. I began talking to other women, and found out from meeting other mothers that I am not alone in my feelings.”

 

Angela joined a local mother's group, which will meet in the same space as the art work on 10th and 17th September to discuss the extent to which their personal experiences and feelings about motherhood fit with those reflected in the exhibition. New mothers are welcome to join in the conversations.

 

Said Angela: “This is more than a series of similar personal stories and individual unique experiences: this is political. Many mothers are thrown into poverty, particularly if there is no other adult in the household. Childcare is unaffordable and isn't flexible enough to meet the demands of employers yet women are often blamed for being 'scroungers' and their unpaid work goes unrecognised by society.”

 

Only 1 in 5 women have not had a child by the age of 45 and so the vast majority of women will have experiences of motherhood.

 

Angela said “I wanted my work to reflect all these contradictions and expectations alongside the harsh realities of motherhood. Women's lives change dramatically after pregnancy.”

It's a time when many women report a variety of mental health issues and are at risk of domestic violence in the home.

 

She goes on, “I intersperse cultural images of love, harmony and happiness with a mother's lot with harsh statistics which show the discrimination women with children face.”

 

For example, 70,000 women in the UK have post natal depression.

 

“I aim to show the struggles women face when feeling depressed and ill, yet have no choice but to give their complete attention to a helpless, dependent human in their care."

 

By using household items, symbols of drudgery, wrapped up in beautifully presented gifts, the work demonstrates how women's feelings of imprisonment lie beneath the consciousness of family and of society. The myths go unchallenged by a society that colludes with the continuing oppression implicit in motherhood with celebrations such as Mother's Day.

 

“No wonder women feel isolated and alone in the face of these harsh contrasts”