March 29 – September 14, 2025
Centraal Museum Utrecht, The Netherlands
Good Mom/Bad Mom is a major exhibition running from March 29 to September 14, 2025, at the Centraal Museum Utrecht. Curated by Laurie Cluitmans and Heske ten Cate, the exhibition is one of five featured in the RE-WIRING project—an EU-funded initiative committed to tackling structural gender inequalities through art and material culture.
Good Mom/Bad Mom explores the politics of motherhood, care, and emancipation. From “supermom” to “never-mother,” the exhibition confronts cultural myths, social expectations, and stigmas surrounding parenthood. It challenges the romanticized and narrow representations of motherhood by spotlighting a wide spectrum of maternal identities—reflected through the work of both historical and contemporary artists.
Spanning time and geography, the exhibition includes works by over 60 artists, among them Barbara Kruger, Artemisia Gentileschi, Käthe Kollwitz, Yoko Ono, Wangechi Mutu, and Marlene Dumas. Thematically curated “time capsules” offer social and historical context to topics such as reproductive rights, autonomy, and care, creating space for critical reflection and public dialogue.
As part of the RE-WIRING project, Good Mom/Bad Mom joins a series of five exhibitions—hosted both online and in physical spaces—that use art and material culture to interrogate gender inequalities. These exhibitions challenge dominant gender representations and illuminate the ways in which gender, labor, mobility, and identity are shaped through interaction with objects, environments, and technologies. Through this lens, RE-WIRING offers tangible, affective ways to engage with pressing social issues.
The exhibition is accompanied by the publication Mothering Myths: An ABC of Art, Birth and Care, featuring contributions from Ajohche Nkemngu Awungjia, Lwando Scott, and Rosemarie Buikema. Available via Valiz.
Venue: Centraal Museum Utrecht
Dates: March 29 – September 14, 2025
Admission: Included with museum ticket
Curators: Laurie Cluitmans & Heske ten Cate
Catalogue: Mothering Myths: An ABC of Art, Birth and Care
More info: valiz.nl/en/publications/mothering-myths
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