ABSTRACT
Motherhood is a rite of passage, during which women experience intense transformation in their roles, lifestyles, and social expectations. Researchers for the most part have turned to explanations that high levels of maternal stress are due to the lack of social support (Schetter, 2010; Misner, 2012; Rauenhorst, 2001). I would hypothesize that prenatal anxiety and pre and postpartum depression might have something to do with women’s internalized model of deficiency unconsciously promoted by various cultural institutions and stereotypes (Comstock, 2005; Hogan, 2016). In this chapter, I analyze how art therapy, which contextualizes women’s experiences within a contemporary artistic practice, can challenge patriarchal assumptions and highlight existing cultural biases that shape pre and postnatal care in the US. To achieve this, I examine patriarchal assumptions in Western culture, highlighting their influence in the current practice of obstetrics, review social support and art therapy literature related to motherhood, and explore applications of birth art by women artists. This chapter explores how birth art by women artists could be incorporated into art therapy practice. I hope that the fusion of birth art by contemporary women artists with pre and postnatal art therapy practice can help resist cultural misogyny, strengthen sense of unity among mothers, and create communities of support.
