ron mueck

I was recently reading about Ron Mueck’s Mother and Child, one of his smaller, approx half life size sculptures, of a mother startled by the presence of her new born baby resting slimy on her stomach. Apparently the curator Colin Wiggins took his own mother to the exhibition and she stood in front of the sculpture speechless for a long time. Finally she said ‘Yes, that’s what it is like’. I would love the audience to react that way to my work. It is somewhat surprising that this work is by a male artist, but it seems certain that his mother-in-law, Paula Rego, has had an influence on his work. I am more interested in how motherhood could enhance the direction of women artists work. I am particularly excited when my audience recognise something in my work that is relevant to their experience of motherhood or childhood memory.