MOTHER, 2026.
Born from environmental concern, ‘MOTHER’ began as a venture into alternative photographic processes. Following the work and research of ‘The Sustainable Darkroom’, I started growing SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast). SCOBY, also known as a ‘Mother’, is a bio-organic material that takes at least two weeks to grow. ‘MOTHER’ is a fossilisation of these organic beings that are born from an oddkinship between the artist and the medium. The nurturing process of growing the SCOBY became a form of queer-motherhood, enriching the work with a care and patience, essential to the slow-paced, ritualistic relationship.
The project is grounded in the work of Donna Haraway and her theory of ‘Make Kin, not Kids’; residing in the world of the ‘Oddkin’ that surpasses patriarchal stereotypes of the familial structure, placing importance on the unexpected collaborations between both living and non-living entities. ‘MOTHER’ aims to be anti-representational of what society projects a Mother to be, disassociating the word from the stereotype.
‘MOTHER’ invites an introspection and celebration of the relations shared between women, and our intrinsic ability to care, love and empathise with one another, with beings non-human and unseen.