Balancing content and form: motherhood and how to represent it

There are two separate interests in my practice – the content that I am driven to explore, and the formal language that I enjoy in painting. In this essay I aim to unpack each of these two interests and observe the exciting and frustrating aspects that I’ve experienced this past year in trying to marry these two conflicting sides. I think there might be a way in which these interests aren’t so separate after all. The content is motherhood – my own partial perspective on motherhood that I wish to express. Although this is something that I’ve been fascinated by for a while, it’s a topic that I’ve only had the courage to address directly during this MA. The formal language is a more long-standing one that I’ve developed instinctively through my painting practice. More than what is being painted, I’m interested in how it’s painted, and this is the case for all the art I look to for inspiration. The way in which they’re painted is what makes me feel a particular way, and therefore, I have always thought that the formal language in my own works (as opposed to content) also must do most of the emoting.