Back in 2015, when Philadelphia artist Aimee Gilmore was in the throes of early motherhood and graduate school, she accidentally knocked over a container of breast milk she had pumped for her newborn daughter, Maya.
But instead of becoming disconsolate over her wasted effort, Gilmore found herself intrigued by patterns the milk took, and its textures as it dried, cracked, and curdled. That led her to experimenting with intentional spills which she photographed and, the following year, began printing on fabric.
She called her creations Milkscapes, and her medium was as intimate as the bond between a mother and child. It was Gilmore’s own breast milk.
“It signifies power, and it is a reflection of the power of my female body,” said the artist, now the mother of Maya, 7, and Max, 3. “It signifies power and pride in this transformation that happens.”
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On Wednesday, eight flags bearing the images of several of Gilmore’s Milkscapes were unveiled at the Maternity Care Coalition’s Early Head Start Building at 2000 Mifflin St. in South Philadelphia. The installation was a joint effort by the artist, the coalition, and Mural Arts Philadelphia.
Gilmore’s artwork has been displayed in many locations locally and elsewhere, including as part of the Designing Motherhood exhibit at the Mutter Museum and now at the MassArt Art Museum in Boston. A meditation necklace she createdthat incorporates breast milk is part of the collection of Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts.
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On her website, she describes her work as “a meditation on love, memory, and transitions of time.” She talks about using various art forms and objects associated with motherhood to look at the personal nature of caregiving but also “the political structure of the care economy.”
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Supporters of last week’s installation, which was during National Breastfeeding Month, said the timing was opportune.
“Art can galvanize action,” said Marianne Fray, Maternity Care Coalition CEO, “so the intersection of art, advocacy, policy change, and motherhood just seem natural.”
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Many of the families served by the coalition are disproportionately impacted by poverty and violence, as well as by barriers to services needed by women and children, she said. At the South Philadelphia Head Start where the Milkscape flags now hang, Fray said the room meant for the care of infants is closed because the center doesn’t have enough teachers.
The installation was also an opportunity, she said, to call attention to “what is going on in our country, the systematic assault on reproductive rights.”
Gilmore agreed.
“The time is now, the urgency is now,” the artist said. “I think having these Milkscapes at an Early Head Start program highlights how connected it all is.”
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To her, there’s no contradiction between support of something as basic to motherhood as breastfeeding and freedom of choice, whatever that choice might be.
“It was my choice to have children, to start a family,” Gilmore said. “Every parent deserves the right to choose the way to feed and nurture and care for their families, whichever way feels appropriate to them.”
The Milkscapes flags are slated to remain on display outside the Maternity Care Coalition building for the next year.
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Philly artist uses breast milk to portray empowerment - The Philadelphia Inquirer
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