who does she think she is?
29 Mar
Last weekend, I met up with an amazing group of women called ArtMamas Atlanta, and we watched the documentary Who Does She Think She Is? The film profiles the lives of five mothers who are visual and performing artists.
Each woman in the film honestly tells her story of carving out a career as an artist in the throes of motherhood. If the names and faces of these artists are not familiar, their daily rituals are common to us all: the mad rush to get to school or to and from after-school activities; the sounds of a crying baby or injured toddler; slicing vegetables in preparation for dinner. And the personal struggles that can surface in any relationship: partners feeling neglected, teenagers feeling embarrassed, divorce, and paying for bills and groceries on a meager income. Sacrifices abound in these women’s lives, but creativity trumps hardship when you are living with purpose.
Janis Wunderlich by C.Lewis Studios
As I sat in this room, a make-shift theatre in the back of an organic grocery shop, with four women and two nursing babies, I was carried by their momentum. Surrounded by their art and baby food jars felt as organic as the produce shelved around me. Each of us cried at some point of the film. We were like a congregation chirping amens to the preacher. Because we know. We understand the call of the paint brush or the guitar or the typewriter, and we know what happens when we drop the call. The unhappiness that creeps in. The void that gets bigger by the day, like a hole in an old pair of socks. Mothers are arrested for neglecting their children, but no one cares much when a woman neglects her art.
Don’t wait for someone to ask you, “hey, didn’t you used to paint/draw/play the kuzoo?” Make the time now. It’s there. Trust me. I play the drums or guitar for about 15 minutes every day. Yesterday, I actually played guitar in my kitchen as I cooked dinner. I boiled noodles and wrote a song. The lyrics will probably be about macaroni and cheese but who cares? I played and fed my kids, and that’s all that matters. You can fit art into your life. And you will love your life, your kids, and your partner more for it.
Edith Vonnegut Doing the Dishes
There is a momentum that builds when you follow your own path. You sleep less, but you don’t mind the tired. Your body aches from holding the paint brush,
banging the drum,
sculpting the clay,
needling the thread,
chopping the onion,
nursing the baby,
wiping the tears (your child’s and your own),
but you are carried through it all with more grace than you feel and more style than you see in the mirror.
Like motherhood, this is a challenge you take on willingly and with the passion of a goddess banging her goddamned drum. I mean this literally. See the movie to learn why female drummers were banned. And p.s. pick up a drum set and go nuts. Amen.
Watch the trailer for Who Does She Think She Is?
Featured artists in the film include:
Angela Williams (theatre actress)
Camille Musser (painter)
Janis Wunderlich (sculpter)
Maye Torres (multi-media artist)
Mayumi Oda (artist and environmentalist)
The Who Does She Think She Is? DVD and party package is posted on MerchMama.
I just saw “Who Does She Think She Is?” at my friend’s place. She bought the House Party Kit and we all had a blast. Not only was the documentary AMAZING, but we also had a lot of fun using the discussion cards that came in the kit. I think that providing people with an entire movie experience did a great job bringing us together and helping us see the true meaning of the movie: that women are powerful and really can do anything that they put their minds to.
Awesome post Jaimes…whether we see ourselves as artists or not, sounds like the film has a lot to say about feeding our own souls…I want to see it.
@Jen: that’s great you experienced the House Party Kit. I think I might host one of those, too.
@Tina: yeah, the film totally spills over into other careers. I think all moms can relate to being pulled in two (or more) directions!
First of all Tina is one of the most creative people I know and therefore needs to give herself credit where credit is due! I can not wait to watch this documentary. It helps to know that other Moms struggle with the same issues and gives me momentum to continue the pursuit of my dream to become an architect! Furthermore, I am going to buy a new acoustic so I to can write songs about macaroni & cheese!
Agreed, Corrie. I remember Tina drawing the hell out of some Disney characters when we were kids!
Please do write some songs about mac and cheese. The world is seriously deprived of songs about food. And share your songs with me next time I’m in VA. We can also do a cover of “Yesterday” for old times sake!!!
drum sets made by pearl are nice sounding and tough too*;:
my brother has this zildjian drum set and they sound really great,:.