In my interdisciplinary artistic research project, I deal with the cultural and social dimensions of mother*hood, care-work and re/production from a critical-reflective perspective. I define “transgressive transformations” as the potential to question traditional norms. As a “(border)crossing” concept, transgression expands structures and deconstructs conventional family concepts and binary gender roles, which can enable transformative changes in the context of mother*hood, care-work and re/production. Subjectivity is not understood as a static state, but as a dynamic, relational and non-linear practice that dissolves the rigid boundaries between inside and outside, self and other.
My intension is to critically examine the historical and current role of mother*hood, which has traditionally been biologically tied to women and socially constructed. Paradoxically, this attachment has contributed to the fact that care-work, which is mainly performed by women, is essential for the generation of capitalist surplus value, but is still not remunerated. Silvia Federici described this process succinctly back in the 1970s: “They say it is love. We say it is unwaged work” (Federici, 1975:1). Domestic activities are invisible and unpaid from an economic point of view (Bock/Duden 1977:119-135). In my experience, this situation is still real today. The dilemma that arises with the practice of reproduction in the context of care-work has not yet been adequately resolved. It is therefore my concern to explore the reinterpretation of “maternal” care-work. I would like to examine how alternative symbolic and socio-economic “maternalities” can emerge, for example in the African-American and Latin American “voguing culture” of the 1980s or in the context of queer parenthood. These alternative “maternalities” break away from traditional family structures and family trees in favor of a rhizomatic way of thinking. Diffraction as a method allows me to examine the interrelationships and overlaps between different social and cultural aspects. I ask how the figure of the mother* can be understood as a relational fabric that encompasses and reflects not only biological but also socio-cultural ties. How can mother*hood be reconceptualized beyond the conventional orientation towards the social mother* role?
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*The term mother is written with an * to open it up to all people with caring responsibilities.
Federici, Silvia. “Wages Against Housework”. Power of Women Collective 1975.
Bock, Gisela and Duden, Barbara. "Arbeit aus Liebe – Liebe als Arbeit: Zur Entstehung der Hausarbeit im Kapitalismus." In Frauen und Wissenschaft. Beiträge zur Berliner Sommeruniversität für Frauen, Juli 1976. Berlin: Courage-Verlag, 1977.