Bojíte se mateřství? / Are You Afraid of Motherhood?

The event entitled Bojíte se mateřství? / Are You Afraid of Motherhood? (2003) in the Lapák woods in Kladno is based on the confrontation of random passersby with the bulging belly of a pregnant woman concealed in the forest thicket. The exposure of people to an unwanted view of a naked, pregnant belly, which is suddenly revealed from beneath a long coat, or to be more precise, the negative reactions of most onlookers, illustrates the taboo nature of this physical form. The attempt to ignore and suppress the view of the pregnant body reaches deeper, pointing to a deeper social idea of motherhood and the nature thereof.

“As a part of the exhibition Artists in the Woods of Performances, I illustrate a banal situation where a man / or a woman/ is surprised by pregnancy, in the thicket of Lapák woods in Kladno. She/he is not frightened just by the bare belly, but by the life transformation hiding behind it – thousands of responsibilities and the lifelong commitment. Thanks to Helena Poláková for her collaboration.” (LK)