THE MOTHERNESS GALAXY Chapter 2: Doctor’s Feelings

“The Motherness Galaxy” is the title of a series of gatherings dedicated to exploring the complexities of motherhood and mothering and their connection to death, mourning, life, and power. When and where does life begin, and who gets to decide? Castélie Yalombo and Sophie Farza invite artists, thinkers, social workers, and anyone interested to delve into the nuances of motherhood.

Maternal bodies are uniquely positioned as they bear witness to the proximity of life and death within their own flesh. These experiences are loaded with fantasies and symbols, creating a sensitive and often challenging environment to support the psychological and reproductive lives of women and parents.

After the first chapter ‘Bad Mother’ in Beursschouwburg, we welcome you for this second chapter ‘Doctor’s Feelings’ as part of Learning Together. The transmission of knowledge about the female body from woman to woman has disappeared in favour of centralised medical knowledge. While childbirth, bereavement and – more symbolically – death no longer take place at home. Doctors are the representatives, managers and privileged witnesses of these events. This chapter looks at the grief mechanisms created by healthcare structures, especially in the context of terminations of pregnancy or the loss of a baby. What is it like to be close to death in a society that tends to keep death at bay?