Spilt Milk is an artist-led social enterprise based in Scotland whose mission is to promote the work of artists who are mothers. 

 
 
 
 
 

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"How many women, I wondered, have sat in a bathroom flabbergasted or crushed by the results of a home pregnancy test — some because it was negative; others because it was positive. The next room of the house similarly speaks to the power that procreation holds over our lives — our sense of self, aspirations, time — regardless of whether one chooses to have or not have children, do it sooner or later, sacrifice other life goals or wonder what parenthood might have been like." . . Via @hyperallergic article 'A house becomes a potent site to process the pain and grief of miscarriage' Images of Monikahouse by @monikamaddux . . . #installationart #performance #pregnancy #miscarriage #maternalart #loss #grief #thepersonalispolitical #dollshouse #sculpture #artist #selfexpression #monikahouse #kansasartist #pregnancy #motherhood
" It is not just Maddux’s ability to narrate her own painful story that gives the work its strength. What makes Monikahouse a place that many, particularly women, might find deeply resonant, is that it gives permission and creates room — indeed, many rooms! — for visitors to reflect on the mental space and emotional energy that questions of reproduction take up in women’s lives. Inserted into the fabric of everyday life in a residential neighborhood and thus made more accessible than it might be in a rarefied gallery space, the installation also highlights the urgency of doing such discussions in public." . . Via @hyperallergic article 'A house becomes potent site to process the grief and pain of miscarriage' Image of the bathroom in Monikahouse @monikamaddux . . #monikahouse #artinstallation #installationart #grief #miscarriage #loss #womanhood #honestmotherhood #performanceart #pregnancy
"What might a contemporary response to this touchstone project (womanhouse) look like? One answer can be found in a large, shabby Queen Anne house owned by the BISON Foundation in the Riverside neighborhood of Wichita. Here, Monika Stockton Maddux has created Monikahouse, her MFA thesis project at Wichita State University that painstakingly processes the psychic forces of desire, loss, and grief of a woman who dreamt of having a daughter, but got instead a string of miscarriages — those sorrowful facts of human reproduction generally passed over by complete silence in our culture’s stories of where babies come from." . . Via @hyperallergic article 'A house becomes a potent site to process the grief and pain on miscarriage'. Photo via @monikamaddux from her #Monikahouse installation.
Q: What drives you to continue to create work? A: My drive to continue to create my work stems from the lack of representation mother artists receive in the “fine” art world. For centuries, the depiction of the mother has mostly been rendered through the voice and perception of men. We are finally seeing artists who are mothers reclaim this voice in art. This process of reclamation revealed that I, along with many other contemporary mother artists, are redefining the depiction of motherhood in art. Therefore, for me, the content of my work has to be honest and clear. Mothers are artists and their position of representing motherhood in art offers a unique and highly valuable record of the world. Through our experiences alone makes us the only ones capable of communicating the raw mental and physical give of what it means to be a mother. Read the full Q&A with spilt milk artist member @kaseyjones_art link in our bio! . . . #patriarchconfinement #patriarchy #smashthepatriarchy #conceptualart #artworld #mothers #motherhood #mothersday #selfportrait #maternal #pregnancy #maternalbody #photography #installation #creativity #artist #spiltmilk #womeninthearts
Q. How has the experience of motherhood impacted your practice on an emotional/intellectual level? Has it made you view yourself/your work differently? Are there things that influence your work now that you didn't think about pre-kids? A. My experience of motherhood has made my work stronger. I am more focused and more intent about what it is I want to say and share with the world. I have adapted my practice so that if I’m not in the studio “making” I am in my head processing and evolving my ideas. This creative thinking time is something I have developed through my time spent breastfeeding my children. The connection I have with my children is something that influences my work that I didn’t think would pre-kids. Pre-kids, I predetermined that I would never m ake my art about my experiences of being a mother and that I would mold my process in order to fit into the category of what is acceptable art. Afterall, I wanted to be a successful artist. But again, I was molding my work to fit within artistic parameters that were designed and dominated by men. My molded process to create artwork in order to receive recognition within the male dominated field of art failed to yield artwork that was unique and true to my experiences. It was forced and too separate from the intensity of what I was currently experiencing, becoming a mother of two young human beings. Once I allowed motherhood into my practice not surprisingly, my process flourished. Read the full Q&A with artist @kaseyjones_art on our site! Link in bio. . . . #mothersday #breastfeeding #workingmother #carework #selfportrait #motherhood #momlife #mommydiaries #womenshistorymonth #artistmother #motherartist #photography #blogger #spiktmilk #expressing #creativemamy #breastfeedingart #momart #multidisciplinaryartist
Q: Have you come up against specific challenges as an artist and mother? A: First and foremost, time management. I have had some practice at this now so when I get the time, I make the most of it and get right to work. Another challenge I have faced is overcoming the stigma of “mom art.” At the start of my transition into motherhood, I resisted creating art about my experiences of being a mother because I didn’t want to be placed into the category of “unsuccessful” artist; because you can’t be a mom and a successful artist. Even moreso, I came to understand that mom art when created by a mother is taboo. It is assumed that because mothers are distracted by the role of being the sole caregivers of nurturing life that they could never be serious artists, like men. In addition, I came to learn that motherhood as content in the visual arts is only valued when it is represented through the voice of a man. Throughout art history, men have been the sole voice in the visual representations of womanhood and motherhood. My recognition of the dominance male artists have in rendering the voice of women and mothers in the field of art shined a light on how prevalent patriarchal beliefs still penetrate the modern art world and how much further we as mother artists have to reach. It is because of this realization that I had to overcome the negative stigma surrounding “mom art” and allow my experiences of motherhood to be the central content of my work. Through my reclamation of this stigma, I have fully embodied my role as a mother artist and see it as my duty to share my experiences fully and honestly. Read the full #mothersday Q&A with @kaseyjones_art on our website - link in our bio! . . . #kaseyjones #beautyandtheblood #blog #artistmother #motherhood #momart #smashthepatriarchy #spiltmilk #portrait #blood #womenartists #womenshistorymonth #makingmotherhoodvisible
Who were the trailblazing women of Leith and Edinburgh? Why were they trailblazers? We are inviting local Edinburgh mums to join us over the Easter school holidays to learn about the unsung women of Leith through drawing, creating and storytelling activities. These FREE workshops are supported by a FREE crèche for under 5's and form part of Citizen Curator's 'Unsung Leith' project. The workshops take place at Dr Bells Family Centre in Leith and run on April 8th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 16th & 19th 12-2pm. Full details and registration via Evenbrite link in our bio. Crèche spaces are limited so please book to avoid disappointment! . . . #edinburgh #leith #familiesinedinburgh #artworkshop #schoolholidays #creche #supportingmothers #trailblazers #creativity #socialenterprise #creativeworkshop #freeactivities #mumlife #creativemamy #citizencurator #unsungleith #socent
This gorgeous monoprint was created by one of the participants in our previous series of 'Unsung Leith : Breaking Barriers' workshops. Fancy having a go yourself? We are inviting local Edinburgh mums to join us over the Easter school holidays to learn about the unsung women of Leith through drawing, creating and storytelling activities. These FREE workshops are supported by a FREE crèche for under 5's and form part of Citizen Curator's 'Unsung Leith' project. The workshops take place at Dr Bells Family Centre in Leith and run on April 8th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 16th & 19th 12-2pm. Full details and registration via Evenbrite link in our bio. Crèche spaces are limited so please book to avoid disappointment! . . . #edinburgh #leith #familiesinedinburgh #artworkshop #printmaking #monoprint #drawing #schoolholidays #creche #supportingmothers #trailblazers #fishwivesofnewhaven #socialenterprise #creativeworkshop #freeactivities #mumlife