Un-mothering

The core focus of my practice has been questioning the notions of longing and belonging with a fascination for vernacular and written language as a unique tool to understand, define and express oneself. 

I am inspired by contemporary thinkers such as Butler, Zizek, and Dufourmantelle in a research based practice that constantly questions the past and the present, in a quest aimed at defining oneself and finding one’s home.

The ongoing project, un-mothering is an attempt of making sense of living as a 'Persona non grata' in one’s family, homeland, and beyond, with the mother-child relationship as its backbone. With the mother’s body being our first home,

un-mothering examines un-homing through the initial separation. 

Discovering anonymous family archives in a market was reminiscent of my own family’s archive. Using found photos as a background, I project my monologues onto them like a magic spell. I also incorporate found objects to create alter like installations that recreated my memories of home. 

Based on her practice, Dufourmantell argues that every mother casts a spell on her child and one must break free from the maternal oath by borning a second time.

She writes:

'Speech, as it is spoken, can one day break the cycle of oaths.'

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