Home Truths: Photography and Motherhood
Editor Bright sets out to explore an "alternative history of the mother in photography", she writes, "one that is not dominated by...the male gaze." The imagery by a multitude of photographers - from nude mother-and-child candids to vernacular photos - turns conventional notions of motherhood on their head, or at least inside out. (Jack CragerAmerican Photo2013-11-01)As with all large projects, the inspiration for Home Truths: Photography and Motherhood came from myriad places, some of which can be hard to trace. But most obviously it was the plethora of "celebrity mom" magazine covers that were appearing at a time of my own pregnancy and a move to the United States from London. The cultural differences toward parenting led me to look more closely at representations of motherhood and examine what was going on across both fine art and the media. This curiosity and exploration has led to an exhibition and book featuring artists and photographers who investigate the concept of the mother figure, responding or reacting to the legacy of the Madonna; the idealized mother; and established myths and stereotypes of motherhood so readily trotted out in the media. Read more: http://lightbox.time.com/2013/10/17/motherhood-reimagined-by-susan-bright/#ixzz2iOXOer2o (Susan BrightTime Lightbox2013-10-17)Bringing together these and other works under the umbrella of 'motherhood and identity' is in itself an important milestone, part of a post-feminist paradigmatic shift, and credit must be given to the show's curator, Susan Bright, and by natural extension, The Photographers' Gallery. Making explicit what it means to walk through the threshold and become a mother, Home Truths can be said to form part of a global process of change and, in the process, joins the confluence of the many small movements forming and developing, challenging and drawing attention to themselves and joining up to form a maternal voice. (Eti WadeContemporary photography magazine online2013-10-14)Housed in two galleries, this exhibition focuses on the themes of loss, identity and motherhood, featuring the works of various artists and photographers. The overall effect not only exposes home truths, it also suggests intriguing fantasy in the maternal links. (Sue StewardStandard.co.uk2013-10-14)Breastfeeding is not represented in popular culture, yet women are shamed if they do not do it, says Susan Bright. (Susan BrightThe Gradian2013-10-14)Now, extracts from Pretend You're Actually Alive will feature in a group show - Home Truths: Photography, Motherhood and Identity - at the Photographers' Gallery in London. The exhibition includes various series by female photographers that brutally depict the emotional and physical strain of motherhood. (Sean O'HaganThe Guardian2013-10-09)As well as Mother, she features in a group show, "Home Truths", which is split between the Photographers' Gallery (where Carucci's work will be displayed) and the Foundling Museum in London, and also forms the basis for a book. (Lucy CavendishThe Telegraph2013-10-07)Published to coincide with an exhibition held at The Photographers' Gallery and The Foundling Museum in London and touring to Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Photography, this beautiful and striking book examines contemporary interpretations of one of the most enduring subjects in the history of picture-making: the image of the mother. Focusing on the work of twelve international photographic artists, the publication challenges the stereotypical or sentimental views of motherhood handed down by traditional depictions, and explores how photography can be used to address changing conditions of power, gender, domesticity, the maternal body, and female identity. (ArtbookPublishing.co.uk2013-10-01)Susan Bright is a photography curator and writer living in New York. Author of Art Photography Now, Auto Focus, Face of Fashion and How We Are: Photographing Britain, the exhibition she co-curated with Val Williams, Bright has now translated her interest in the visual representation of motherhood in contemporary photography into two concurrent exhibitions at The Photographers' Gallery and The Foundling Museum in London, as well as a related publication Home Truths: Photography and Motherhood, soon to be published by Art/Books. (Christiane MonarchiPhotomonitor.co.uk2013-10-01)