I am a visual artist, mother of two children aged 12 and 4, and co-founder of the MeWe arts collective. I intend to use this site to explore how my personal experiences as a mother informs my arts practice. To reflect upon the maternal in relationship to memory, loss, and mental health in particular depression and post natal depression. To investigate and explore emotional wellbeing through an expression of the mother-self in arts practice. As I approach the menopause, as my eldest son reaches his teenage years and as my youngest son begins school, I find myself shifting between the then and the now. I find myself re-looking and investigating my maternity.
Website: http://helensargeant.co.ukMy first pregnancy was filled with calculations and a desperate need to try and grasp hold of and comprehend what was happening to my changing body, and self. All physical things were measured, peeing into silly small plastic tubes, standing … Continued
I swim through the chaos of your bedroom. I sort, tidy, order, clean, re-arrange, mend, remove and reunite Lego bits, match attax, top trump cards, matches, badges, marbles, plastic super hero’s, animals, cars, glup, trinkets, a robot dinosaur, magazine’s, books, … Continued
Hide and Seek
I thought about how beautiful, perfect you looked, lying in your nappy, legs just touching my legs, thumb being sucked. I thought about how fortunate I am to have you, lying next to me. I thought about my eldest son, … Continued
I remember approaching the door. Being welcomed into the house. The patterned victorian tiles in the hallway. A calm, serious, middle aged woman seating herself behind a desk, with chairs for me and him to sit in front. She is talking, offering some … Continued
I’m the wicked witch, Basket brim full of apples, Luring children to sleep, Camouflaged behind face paint, Domestic soldier, Dust explorer, Odd sock finder, Sink hole un-blocker, Knicker washer, Bottom cleaner, Cake maker, Light bulb replacer, Puppet pretender, Train set … Continued
The sticky plastic green of the arm chair holds my body in comfort, My mind a jumble of distress, Tangled together thoughts like the creeping of the laundry pile, Listening patiently, Tears pool in my eyes, Pulling out a tissue from … Continued
Sleepers, I gaze at you, Two pairs of lungs, Air sucked in, Our rising and falling breath, Light dapples on your peach skin, The uncovered duvet revealing your broadening shoulders, the crease in your back, the nape of your neck, … Continued
The full moon casts a milky light, Days slip into sand and holes, Castles built then destroyed, Pulsating transparent jellyfish swims with tentacles trailing, Lifeboat launches, ………………………………………………………………………………… “Mummy can you come and dig with me”, requests Naoise ………………………………………………………………………………… Tracing my … Continued