Exposition Bonnes Mères MUCEM

For four millennia, motherhood has been at the heart of stories, rituals, and images that shape societies.

The exhibition “Bonnes Mères” (Good Mothers) thus celebrates Mediterranean motherhood as a social construct, a political issue, and an artistic subject in an immersive and diachronic journey retracing its history from Antiquity to the present day, in a constant back-and-forth between eras and works. From ancient mother goddesses to the Bonne Mère of Marseille, from patriotic mothers to contemporary artists, it questions representations of motherhood that often carry injunctions and reveals the plurality of maternal experiences.

The scenography is immersive and sunny, accompanying visitors on a sensitive journey unfolding in three sections. “Bonnes Mères” opens with images linked to traditional figures of motherhood, often idealized and fantasized. It then turns to the complex and unique realities of motherhood, which are sometimes invisible, revealing intimate experiences that are often overlooked, such as perinatal bereavement and pregnancy termination. The exhibition ends with a focus on transmission and mother-child bonds, deciphering codes and mimicry.

Curators:
Caroline Chenu, Research Fellow at Mucem
Anne-Cécile Mailfert, President of the Fondation des Femmes