'Hettie Judah's enthralling and important book expands a male-centred art history to include
mothers as subjects and symbols makers and myths' Jennifer Higgie 'One of the most
electrifying and important books I have ever read. Hettie Judah takes us on a rich
comprehensive generative beautifully written journey through the works of art that have made
the invisibility of real motherhood and maternal subjectivity visible. Every sentence and work
crackles and sparks. I didn't want it to end. Stunning urgent and extremely inspiring. We all
need this book' Lucy Jones author of Matrescence 'An important and eye-opening book
grounded in Judah's extensive experience and research. I knew some artists in this book already
but didn't know many others and this is a book I will keep close and refer to time and time
again. As a writer and as a mother this is personal too. It is time motherhood comes out of
the margins and we see hear and talk about the extensive invisible labour joy pain of
mothering. This book is a much-needed addition to the canon' Dr Pragya Agarwal Exploring
maternity through the work of artists from prehistory to the present day Acts of Creation
addresses the abiding mother-shaped hole in art history. Long taboo lived experiences of
motherhood - and all that accompanies it - are now the subject of urgent discussion. Acts of
Creation: On Art and Motherhood delves into the joys and heartaches mess myths and mishaps of
motherhood through over 150 artworks from ancient goddess artifacts to contemporary
interpretations of pregnancy in the present. While the Madonna and Child archetype has
dominated Western art we rarely encounter art about real motherhood in all its raw
unfiltered complexity. Renowned author and curator Hettie Judah examines how shifting ideals of
motherhood have been constructed and promoted through visual culture. Moving into the 20th and
21st centuries it also looks at how women artists - among them Barbara Hepworth Jenny Saville
Paula Modersohn-Becker Betye Saar Suzanne Valadon Louise Bourgeois Carrie Mae Weems - have
worked to subvert these ideals and reclaim the narrative. Women have long been told that they
cannot be both an artist and a mother: here the artist mother is instead addressed as an
important cultural paradigm. Acts of Creation explores lived experience of motherhood - and of
not becoming a mother - offering a complex account that engages with ongoing concerns around
gender caregiving and reproductive rights. Published to coincide with the acclaimed Hayward
Gallery touring exhibition of the same name Acts of Creation is an engaging thought-provoking
and richly illustrated must-read on the evolving discourse on motherhood offering a fresh
perspective that challenges conventions and inspires change.
