Viewing The magic and mess of motherhood at the Arnolfini

The wild rollercoaster of motherhood is in the spotlight in Acts of Creation, a Hayward Gallery touring exhibition that begins at the Arnolfini in Bristol. Evoking the joy, pain, mess and mishaps of this lived experience, the show is a riposte to the idea that a women’s artistic career is over when she conceives, revealing how procreation itself can give birth to creative inspiration.

Curator Hettie Judah, who wrote the 2022 book, How Not To Exclude Artist Mothers (and other parents), has gathered together works by new and established artists, including scenes from Carrie Mae Weems’s Kitchen Table Series, which show a mother and daughter at table, oscillating between closeness and tension, and Billie Zangewa’s silk collage “Every Woman” depicting the artist and her young son amid a sea of junk and toys. Motherhood is the muse – stretch marks, breast pumps, plastic clutter and all.