You Are Everything to Me

'You Are Everything to Me’ offers an alternative, uncomfortable, perspective on the experience of motherhood. The work invites contemplation of women who find themselves as prisoners of their maternal life, weighed down by the negation of their own well-being, their desires, and their identity. 

This project began in July 2022 with the story of an Italian mother who abandoned her daughter in her cot bed, and let her die of starvation. This tragedy deeply affected me and prompted me to think about maternity from a different perspective, far from the poetic imagery and stereotypes we are raised on, or that are imposed on us. I felt the urge to understand, research the rising number of maternal filicides, and try to identify with the life of all those mothers who live through something so universally treasured and revered - motherhood - with extreme loneliness and despair.

My imagery reflects on the expected role of motherhood in the patriarchal vision; an idealised myth that dictates how mothers should feel and behave according to social norms. I invite the viewers to hear all those mothers who are silently struggling to cope, mostly unseen by their family, communities and institutions. Mothers who find it difficult to ask for help, either out of shame or for fear of their own sentiments.

In an era where just a handful of nations have taken concrete steps to implement supportive policies, I am driven to raise awareness of, and provoke much-needed conversations about, these concealed and unsupported experiences so these important - if difficult - stories can be told.

@angelacrosti_photography