Reframing art and motherhood

In this series, Ruud Priem and I share unique insights into how we collect at the museum and explore the fascinating stories behind our recent acquisitions. The featured works, spanning various times and genres, are presented in a dedicated corner on the 4th floor and change every 2-3 months.

A self-portrait by American photographer Diane Arbus (1923-1971), generously donated to the museum in December of the previous year, inaugurated the series from March until mid-May. The work holds particular significance as it is the first work by Arbus to be included in our museum’s collection. In this text, I will pinpoint the narrative and context behind Arbus’s photograph by focusing on three main themes: the multifaceted aspects of the self-portrait, the social context that frames the work and the representation of motherhood in art.

Self-portraiture

Taken in 1945, the photograph depicts 22-year-old Diane Arbus, pregnant with her first child, Doon. At the time, her husband, Allan Arbus, whom she married in 1941, was serving as a photographer in the United States Army Signal Corps in Burma. It is speculated that Arbus sent him this photo to share the news of her pregnancy, underscoring the personal and intimate nature of the photo.

The portrait shows the young woman standing partially naked, in her underwear, in what appears to be a bedroom, with bed sheets visible in the background. She holds the camera firmly in her right hand, while gazing confidently into the lens, indicating that she is in full control of the image-making process.

The photo not only documents Arbus’s physical state of pregnancy but also highlights her role as the creator of the image. As such, it functions as a powerful statement of her agency, wherein both her visibly pregnant body and the camera in her hand unmistakably assert her identity as an artist, independent woman and expecting mother. In doing so, the photo challenges the conventional norms of the era and the passive role largely assigned to women, especially pregnant women. The self-portrait, thus, becomes an important expression of the artist’s autonomy and creative self-determination and prompts us to question traditional notions of femininity, motherhood and creative agency.

Social context

The social context of the 1940s, marked by traditional gender roles and limited opportunities for women in the arts, provides a backdrop against which Diane Arbus’s self-portrait gains additional importance. Within this context, her self-portrait does not only defy societal expectations of what an artist and a mother should be, but also reframes the discourse around maternal representation in art, a subject that was, at the time, not depicted in such a direct and unidealised manner.

Arbus is primarily recognised for her portraits of marginalised individuals and communities, offering insights into their unique experiences and challenges. Despite her acclaim, Arbus was a controversial figure who often faced criticism, with renowned art critic Susan Sontag, for instance, arguing that her photos were taken from a privileged position that emphasises her subjects’ “otherness”. In this photo, Arbus herself embodies the “other”, confronting existing biases and stereotypical ideas of an artist and a mother in the 1940s head-on, with an honest and direct gaze.

From the 1960s onwards, with the rise of secondwave feminism, female artists have gradually developed their own identity models, highlighted by art historian Linda Nochlin’s seminal question in 1971: “Why have there been no great women artists?”. Despite the progress made by women artists at that time, however, the themes of birth and motherhood still remained somewhat of a taboo. For centuries, references to women’s reproductive capacity were used to dismiss their suitability for higher cultural achievements, serving as an argument for their suppression and exclusion. In this context, it’s hardly surprising that feminist artists of the time initially focused on female emancipation, which was in most cases aligned with being childless. Consequently, the idea that women must choose between being great artists and being mothers persist to this day. This social context reveals the ongoing challenges faced by women artists who navigate art and motherhood in a world that (still) often fails to accommodate both simultaneously.

Motherhood

Motherhood has long been a theme in art throughout history. In European art history, it has often been portrayed in a highly idealised and sacred way, as a symbol of fertility, caregiving and nurturing, exemplified by the Virgin Mary and child. In these visual representations, mothers seem to be depicted as embodiments of purity, protection, tenderness and devotion. Over the centuries, views on motherhood in art have evolved, illustrated by women artist like Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, who painted herself with her daughter. More recently, artists such as Frida Kahlo or Louise Bourgeois have critically reevaluated and enriched the discourse on maternal experience, incorporating deeply personal, thought-provoking and complex elements of motherhood into their works.

Today, the subject of art and motherhood seems to be gaining increased visibility in the art world, with major exhibitions such as the UK traveling show Arts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood, curated by Hettie Judah, author of the book How to Not Exclude Artist Mothers (and other parents), setting the example. In Luxembourg’s art scene, too, contemporary artists have actively explored the subject of maternity. The uproar surrounding a pregnant Gëlle Fra in 2001, when feminist artist Sanja Iveković presented her work Lady Rosa of Luxembourg for the first time, is a compelling example of the ongoing debates and controversies related to various issues, including, but not limited to, the representation of the pregnant female body.

The dual role of being a mother and an artist has also been investigated by Luxembourgish artists. Sarah Schleich, for example, titled a recent exhibition in Dudelange after her daughter’s birth time, using it as a lens to examine identity formation. Likewise, Krystyna Dul frequently documents her own experiences of motherhood through photography and Germaine Hoffmann, a collage artist, provides a compelling personal perspective. The latter had her first monographic show at a Luxembourgish institution at the age of 90. Being a mother first, before dedicating herself to her art, her story sheds light on the challenges of juggling a creative career with the responsibilities of being a mother.

Text: Lis Hausemer - Images: Eric Chenal

Source: MuseoMag N°III 2024