Portraits of Mental Health, Strength and Survival

Carolyn Mendelsohn and the Maternal Mental Health Alliance

This exhibition reveals the often-hidden realities of motherhood and maternal mental health through portrait photography, still life, and audio. Created by artist Carolyn Mendelsohn in collaboration with 10 women with lived experience. It invites us to look, listen and understand.

Perinatal mental illnesses affect as many as 1 in 4 women and birthing people, and 1 in 10 dads and non-birthing partners. Left untreated, they can be devastating and even deadly; with suicide persistently the leading cause of death between six weeks and a year after pregnancy in the UK. Yet with the right support at the right time, recovery is possible.

“I feel so honoured to have worked with these extraordinary women, who shared their stories with such honesty and courage. This commission gave me a rare chance, as an artist, to reflect on my own lived experience too. More than anything, I hope these portraits help open conversations, so others feel heard, supported, and know they’re not alone.”  Carolyn Mendelsohn

With heartfelt thanks to the incredible women featured in this project;

Abi, Anna ,Catherine, Geeta, Karah, Laura, Laura-Rose, Natalie, Raiye, Tessa

THE PROCESS

‘This is Also Motherhood.
I am an artist and a mother.

I wanted the portraits in this exhibition to be powerful and compelling, but also tender. Not a re-enactment of trauma, but a reflection of it: a gesture, an object, a still life that could hold memory. Alongside each portrait, I recorded the women’s stories. Stories told in their own voices and on their own terms.

My process is deliberate and collaborative. It begins with conversation, with trust.

I travel to each woman, set up a temporary studio in a place where she feels safe, and take time, sometimes an hour or more, before the portrait is complete. Each still life emerges slowly, shaped by her memories and chosen objects. Finally, there is the long interview: space for her voice to lead. The whole process takes half a day.

For the exhibition, I also wanted to create something immersive and symbolic. Each woman wrote her story, which I photographed and had printed on muslin; a fabric intimately tied to the earliest days of parenthood. Hung in the gallery like lines of washing, these cloths work as a metaphor and carry both fragility and strength, an offering of memory into shared space.

I feel deeply honoured to have worked with these extraordinary women, who opened their hearts and entrusted me with their stories. Their honesty and courage are a gift. My hope is that this work not only raises awareness, but also helps to break through the silence and shame that too often surrounds these experiences. May it open a channel for others to speak, to listen, and to know that they are not alone. Together, we can share, support, and strengthen one another’ Carolyn Mendelsohn