Caroline Walker features in 'M(otherhood)s'
Caroline Walker features in the group exhibition, M(otherhood)s at Denison Museum, Ohio, USA. On display is Walker's ink drawing Sensory Play I, an expressive piece that shows an early-years teacher encouraging a child to interact with a ball pit. Both subjects appear seemingly unaware of the viewer’s presence; the adult is engaged, while the child engages in jubilant play. Melanie Vandenbrouck (Chief Curator, Pallant House Gallery) writes in a newly commissioned essay: “Like Walker armed with her camera, as viewers we assume the position of the observer/voyeur, at the edge of the scene – seeing a part of the children’s everyday that parents don’t usually get to see.”
M(otherhood)s explores the many ways care, identity, and connection take shape across time and culture, ranging from tender portraits of mothers and children, to contemporary works that challenge and expand understandings of caregiving.
Rooted in the museum’s teaching mission, M(otherhood)s is created in dialogue with college courses across disciplines, including history, literature, psychology, education, and the arts. Visitors are invited to reflect on motherhood not just as a biological role, but as a broader experience: one that includes chosen family, community caregivers, and those who mother in ways often overlooked.
