Read on Twitter
spoiler: it's not 'motherhood', it's fatherhood.
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/dec/02/motherhood-taboo-art-world-sold-out-bourgeoisie
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/dec/02/motherhood-taboo-art-world-sold-out-bourgeoisie
can we have a study not on the 'problem' of artists as mothers but the problem of fathers as artists' partners?
(obv not all women artists with kids live in heterosexual partnerships, and not all male partners behave unfairly, but all of them live within a society with continued patriarchal expectations which come not only from within these families, but outside them)
'nice' fathers seldom put in equal parenting work: smart, funny, sexy, cute, talented, loving fathers. these men are still 'nice', and are still valued and loved for all these things. they don't have to be hateable for this to still be a problem.
there are some very real reasons it's difficult to talk about equal parenting x creative work, so it remains a 'mothers' issue'. these are only a few of them:
* perceived disloyalty to above funny/smart/loving partners or, god forbid, your very own kids.
* perceived disloyalty to above funny/smart/loving partners or, god forbid, your very own kids.
*if things are unfair (certainly i) might feel i'm not 'trying hard enough to make things work/am not a good enough feminist etc.
* uneven input: it's difficult to make this an issue when beloved partners sometimes put in equal parenting time and sometimes don't. related to...
* finance: arts jobs are often freelance. if the artist's partner has a salaried job, their time can become 'more important' in undeniable ways that can s'times expand & resonate more than necessary, leading to habitual division of labour & eroded self-confidence in the artist
these are only a few factors, from personal experience or witnessing the lives of people i've been close to... i'm sure there are more...
