Louise Bourgeois and Tracey Emin in Good Mom/Bad Mom
29 March—14 September 2025
Group exhibition at Centraal Museum, Utrecht, the Netherlands
Supermom. Regretful parent. Raven mother. Single mom. Conscious non-mother. Wish mother. Bonus mother. Adoptive mother. Co-mother. Never-mother. Motherhood has countless variations. Good Mom/Bad Mom is an exhibition about motherhood, about caring, about the politics of the womb, about emancipation.
The exhibition offers a contemporary reflection on the art historical cliché of the 'good mother' and takes visitors on a journey through the history of the imagination of motherhood: from age-old, stereotypical and often romanticised mother-and-child images to works by new and exciting generations of artists who deal with this theme in their own unique – and often very personal – way. In thematic cabinets - 'time capsules' - subjects such as abortion and self-determination are given a historical and social interpretation and thus offer starting points for discussion.
With Good Mom/Bad Mom, the Centraal Museum unravels the clichés, myths and stigmas of motherhood and creates space for a more emancipated parenthood.
Featuring works by: Tyna Adebowale (1982), Abraham Bloemaert (1564 or 1566-1651), Louise Bourgeois (1911-2010) & Tracey Emin (1963), Hendrick Bloemaert (1601-1672), Candice Breitz (1972), Miriam Cahn (1949), Sara Sejin Chang (Sara van der Heide) (1977) – The Mother Mountain Institute, Edward Clydesdale Thomson (1982), Jesse Darling (1981), Rineke Dijkstra (1959), Theo van Doesburg (1883–1931), Britt Dorenbosch (1986), Marlene Dumas (1953), Shardenia Felicia (1992), Lotti van der Gaag (1923–1999), Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1656), Guerrilla Girls (1985), Lise Haller Baggesen (1969), Camille Henrot (1978), Loie Hollowell (1983), Luchita Hurtado (1920-2020), Patricia Kaersenhout (1966), Käthe Kollwitz (1867-1945), Kinke Kooi (1961), Barbara Kruger (1945), Jan Adam Kruseman (1804-1862), Master of Liesborn (15th century), Tala Madani (1981), Marie-Claire Messouma Manlanbien (1988), Annette Messager (1943), Emmeline de Mooij (1978), Katja Novitskova (1984), Jonas Ohlsson (1967) & Magnus Monfeldt (1973), Wangechi Mutu (1972), Yoko Ono (1933), Dennis Oppenheim (1938–2011), Natalia Ossef (1983), Femmy Otten (1981), Frida Orupabo (1986), Otto van Rees (1884–1957), Paula Rego (1935–2022), Pipilotti Rist (1962), Tanja Ritterbex (1985), Sijben Rosa (1988), Hend Samir (1986), Jan van Scorel (1495- 1562), Monica Sjöö (1938–2005), Buhlebezwe Siwani (1987), Eva Spierenburg (1987), Lily van der Stokker (1954), Emma Talbot (1969), Charley Toorop (1891-1955), Aline Thomassen (1964), Helen Verhoeven (1974), Willem Hendrik van der Wall (1716–1790), Caroline Walker (1982), Billie Zangewa (1973), Portia Zvavahera (1985), Rhonda Zwillinger (1950–2019).