Mothering Myths – Reimagining Motherhood Through Art and Resistance

Mothering Myths dismantles the clichés, stigmas, and cultural narratives surrounding motherhood, offering a transhistorical and intersectional reexamination of what it means to mother — and to refuse motherhood. Through art, text, and dialogue, the book challenges traditional frameworks, reclaiming motherhood as a site of creativity, collectivity, and self-determination.

Highlighting the voices and practices of artist-mothers, voluntarily childless women, non-female parents, and so-called “raven mothers,” Mothering Myths explores the politics of care, autonomy, and identity. It positions mothering not as a biological destiny but as an act of resistance and imagination.

Published alongside exhibitions at Centraal Museum Utrecht and Nest Art Space in The Hague, this volume serves as both a curatorial extension and a manifesto — calling for a more inclusive and emancipatory understanding of care, gender, and creation.