A look back at Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood
From 19 April – 13 July 2025
The major group exhibition Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood filled our galleries with over 100 artworks from more than 60 modern and contemporary artists. Curated by Hettie Judah for Hayward Gallery Touring, the exhibition explored lived experiences of motherhood, offering a complex account that engaged with contemporary concerns about gender, caregiving and reproductive rights.
While the Madonna and child is one of the great subjects of European art, art about motherhood as a lived experience, in all its complexity, is rarely seen. Acts of Creation addressed the blind spot in art history, asserting the artist mother as an important – if rarely visible - cultural figure.
We welcomed lots of visitors through our gallery doors, making the exhibition one of our busiest in recent years. You told us the exhibition was -
Published
very empowering, it is also super stimulating and full of very interesting things…
very moving exhibition, made me think/feel deeply…really wonderful collection of works
a truly beautiful exhibition, physically and emotionally. It felt accessible and well balanced
An absolutely beautiful exhibition
A celebration to open the show
We kicked off the exhibition with our Meet the Curator event, where curator Hettie Judah was in conversation with DCA Director Beth Bate. This sold out event was followed by a busy exhibition preview, where visitors got a chance to see the work on show before the public.
For Families
We were delighted to hold lots of family events for this show, including a Bring a Baby exhibition tour for caregivers and babies, a Relaxed Art Making session for adults, three Family Art Labs for creating together, and our regular Messy Play sessions for 0-3 year olds. Throughout the show we also introduced Bring a Baby: Stay and Play, where our Create Space was turned into a stimulating and safe place for our youngest visitors under three – all of these sessions were well attended as over 300 of you engaged with the programme.
We welcomed exhibiting artist Cassie Arnold, whose work school uniform bullet proof dress featured in the show. Cassie held a busy family weaving workshop- prior to the workshop we caught up with her and you read more here. We also hosted a New Mothers as Writers workshop with Catrin Kemp, a creative Hello in There Wee One session for expectant parents, and welcomed Liesel Burisch, an expert in queer nursing and exhibiting artist to host some caring and inclusive workshops for parents, caregivers and support networks.
Being in an inclusive family focused environment, was lovely to meet cassie + her family - thank you
Visitor feedback on Cassie Arnold’s workshop
What a beautiful experience. Thank you for today! I haven't written in for too long
Participant in the New Mothers as Writers workshop
it’s so nice to have weekly session that is so relaxed and free, I feel I can chill and feed my baby - it’s a safe place
Fantastic facilities at DCA especially the baby changing room
Lovely space and toys
Feedback on Bring a Baby: Stay and Play
In Cinema
Hettie selected three films by Diablo Cody as her Curator's Choice Screenings: Juno, which we were delighted to screen in 35mm, Young Adult and Tully.
We also hosted a screening of Caroline Walker: Women’s Work, a new documentary about the artist Caroline Walker by director Nicola Black – it was only the second screening of the film and the first time it had been shown in Scotland. Caroline Walker and Nicola Black joined for a post screening Q&A with Beth Bate.
The exhibition addressed diverse experiences of motherhood across thematic rooms: Creation, which looks at conception, pregnancy, birth and nursing. It imagined motherhood as a creative act. Maintenance, which explored motherhood and caregiving in the day-to-day. Here we find artists engaged in domestic chores, keeping children safe and in The Kitchen; Loss, which touches on miscarriage and involuntary childlessness, as well as reproductive rights. The final room was The Temple – a celebration of the artist as mother. For decades women were told they could not be both an artist and mother - these portraits stood in defiance of that idea.
Acts of Creation is moving , interesting, continually surprisingThe Scotsman
Hear more from our friends and colleagues
As part of the exhibition promotion, we were excited to invite friends and colleagues into the show to discuss what works resonated with them
I love DCA! Another juicy, exciting, thought-provoking exhibition
I am a parent artist. Today, I feel seen. I feel like I belong as an artist
Audio resources
You can access can access audio descriptions for selected works that featured in Acts of Creations: On Art and Motherhood via Soundcloud, Bloomberg and by scanning the QR codes on the gallery walls.
Audio versions of the wall labels that featured in Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood are available on Soundcloud and Bloomberg.
An audio version of the exhibition notes for Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood is available on Soundcloud and Bloomberg.
Audio descriptions of the exhibition, provided by visual describer Juliana Capes, are available on Soundcloud and Bloomberg.
Exhibition Notes: Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood
