Kenya Smith reflects on the reality of motherhood at the Museum of Hackney’s Mothers of Hackney exhibition.
Mothers of Hackney is an exhibition at the Hackney Museum. I was drawn to this exhibition since it includes women of many races, celebrating the diversity of the area.
I love that the Hackney Museum has chosen to show its appreciation of mothers, as I feel being a mother is a job that is often overlooked and undervalued. This exhibition shows not only the wonders of being a mother, but also the pain and the hardships.
As I was reading through the women’s stories, I couldn’t help seeing the women in my life: my mother, my aunties – women I look up to and respect.
One of the stories, told by Kirsty Suttling, describes her struggles with domestic violence and how music helped her through periods of depression. I felt it was important that they included such issues as domestic violence and depression as these topics are sometimes overlooked, despite a third of mothers saying they experienced “mental health issues” in an online survey conducted by Radio 5 Live.
Kirsty’s mention of music as therapy resonated with me, as I often turn to music when I go through rough times. Initially it surprised me that, as a mother, Kirsty could find time to enjoy music. This gave me a better view of how being a mother doesn’t mean you stop being the person you were before.
I come from a single parent household where my mother looked after me and my two siblings. I have the utmost respect for mothers because I watched mine do whatever she could to provide a decent life for us all.
I see my mother in a lot of these women, especially Hawa, who spoke about wanting to hold her child, which reminds me of when my mother was pregnant with my sister.
My mother always says she’s glad she moved from Jamaica to Hackney because she doesn’t think she would have been able to handle motherhood in a country where opportunities are limited. Fortunately, Hackney is a borough that offers a lot of help to mothers. Moving was definitely a decision that served my mother well – the same is true of many of the women celebrated in this exhibition.
Mothers of Hackney runs until 5 January 2019 at the Museum of Hackney.
