Networks

Within BÄM, a working group on care in the arts and design has been established. Further, BÄM! deveops sustainable formats through evening schools, regular meetups, publications, and talks that build networks to increase the visibility of FLINTA individuals and foster collective action.

In light of increasing attacks on and restrictions of critical perspectives—as well as the polemical questioning of politically engaged art and scholarship—art of intervention explores the potential of culture in connection with critical thinking and political mobilization. Core themes include (queer) feminism, care, diversity and inclusion, anti-racism, and innovative forms of knowledge production.

The network shares the experiences, needs, and resources of its members, aiming to foster empowering alliances and bring together collective strength to drive necessary change in the cultural sector.

Through local, regional and international projects, the foundation supports artists and cultural professionals by helping them develop a sustainable career in the cultural and creative field.

Their projects are carefully curated and tailored to answer the needs of artists today, whether they are recent graduates, juggling different commitments, parent artists, or, more generally, emerging artists.

Combining a theater career—whether on or behind the scenes—with family life is a major challenge. There is a lack of family-oriented structures that make a fulfilling and financially sustainable professional life possible. This association (translation: Stage Mothers) brings together theater professionals who build networks, share experiences, and work toward new structures in the theater landscape. We represent all disciplines, both on and behind the stage, in municipal theaters as well as in the independent scene.

Founded in 2020, the working group has since engaged in regular exchanges to identify current gaps in the dance scene and funding systems, while developing concrete solutions. To build a network with relevant community members and activists, the group invites guests from across disciplines and cultural policy to participate in these discussion rounds.

As the host organization of the working group, Tanzbüro München contributes to the sustainable improvement of production conditions for contemporary dance in Munich by facilitating the exchange of ideas and resources and engaging in cultural policy work. In doing so, it also strengthens the visibility of the local dance scene on both national and international levels. In addition to its own initiatives—such as the international exchange project “Meeting Points”—the group’s core focus lies in providing professional development and advisory services for Munich-based dance professionals.

Launched in 2021 as part of the first online networking event, the initiative focused on sharing experiences and exploring self-empowerment strategies for so-called "artist parents."

In 2022, the second digital edition expanded the conversation by integrating academic perspectives on the tensions between parenthood and the arts. In addition, practical proposals and political demands were formulated, highlighting the challenge of navigating parenthood and an artistic career between flexibility and structure.

Through its project kunst+care, the alliance addresses the compatibility of care work and artistic production. The goal is to improve funding structures at both state and federal levels and to ensure full participation in the art sector.

Through collective processes, the group engages artistically with themes such as motherhood*, reproduction, and care work in the context of art and society. The collective advocates for the visibility of care-giving artists and for creating art with and around children. FLÜGELMUETERE claims this process as equally valid as art that is produced and exhibited in spaces not shared with children, challenging conventional artistic canons.

galerie asterisk* dedicates a solo exhibition to artists in the year their child is born. All births are retrospectively archived as exhibitions.
In this way, galerie asterisk* takes a political stand against exclusionary practices in the art world. The aim is to build a network through artists’ biographies: visible and recognizable.

Due to the empirical and very practice-orientated research that K&K has conducted since 2018 on networking and exhibition work, there is a broader basis for discussion in the debate on art production and care work.

K&K operates at the interface of artistic collective and political initiative and has created an important platform for artists with care tasks in recent years, organizes exhibitions, discursive meetings, actions in public space and regularly sends out newsletters. All activities are about networking, working together on projects and pooling information.

The collective follows a consistently constructive approach—aiming not only to diagnose societal issues but also to envision utopias and develop socio-ecological perspectives. The seven artist-mothers from various fields of the performing arts developed a solidarity-based working model during their first production, UnSichtBar, at Theater Rampe as part of their residency at the 6tagefrei Festival 2021/22. This model pools individual resources through collaboratively negotiated part-time and full-time arrangements, enabling the reconciliation of motherhood and artistic practice.

The network stands for the recognition of the following as a common practice:
• the general acceptance of career gaps due to care work
• the elimination of age restrictions for grants and awards
• residency grants that include childcare and additional support for care-related costs
• the announcement of location-independent grants
• support for re-entering the professional field after a family phase

Both photographers share a deep passion for self-portraiture and have recognized self-portraits as a powerful medium to express what matters most to them.

Their greatest mission as photographers is to make the invisible visible through images and to communicate meaningful messages. They are particularly committed to raising awareness of structural inequality, intersectionality, and the significance of care in all its forms.

In addition to hosting workshops and talks, the two photographers run the Wizual Labor—a photography community and think tank for all FLINTA* photographers, artists, and those who aspire to become one. The Labor was founded as a space for exchange, solidarity, experimentation, and collective empowerment.

M.A.R.S. emerged from the ongoing discourse around the dual role of being both an artist and a mother*, a role that presents participating artists with numerous challenges. The group explores the many dimensions of motherhood* and seeks to use them as a space for artistic inquiry—without being reduced to the role of "mother*" alone.
Their artistic research investigates what artistic practice can look like with or despite children, enabling dialogue and collaboration across disciplines and materials. This research process is informed by everyday, personal narratives and the contextual knowledge they generate.

Through collective artistic processes, they contribute to shaping the discourse on motherhood while making contemporary feminist perspectives on motherhood(s) in the arts visible. Their artistic practice focuses on inclusive, community-driven experiments as alternatives to traditional structures of art production—for example, through autobiographical responses to classic feminist texts or performances that incorporate children's games.

Artists who are mothers must be recognized as a legitimate enrichment of the art world.

The initiative also considers it urgent to expand funding opportunities for artists with children. It calls for the creation of grants specifically designed for artists who are mothers, as well as the adaptation of residency conditions to accommodate family circumstances.

We host international online conferences and share information about events, initiatives, books, films, and much more on our Instagram account.

For collab-posts on Instagram and any other information email the initiative.

The activist-artistic collective campaigns for the visibility of artists with caring responsibilities and fights for fairer structures in the art sector. Since 2019, the collective has been organizing exhibitions and public programs on the topic of “Art & Care” in southern Germany in order to create visibility for necessary structural changes. The collective consists of the artists and activists Sascia Bailer, Anna Gohmert, Renate Liebel, Marie Lienhard and Didem Yazıcı.

This initiative builds on the 2018 publication Nicht nur Mütter waren schwanger – Unheard Perspectives on the Supposedly Most Natural Thing in the World, the first German-language volume to link personal accounts of pregnancy and reproductive justice with political structures. It centers experiences beyond cis-heteronormative norms—such as queer and lesbian family models, trans pregnancies, miscarriages, abortions, and reproductive technologies.

The online platform expands the project with new contributions, artistic works, and critical questions—addressing, for example, the temporalities of pregnancy and parenthood, changing legal landscapes, and the effects of current crises on reproductive choices. The site features personal narratives, essays, audio pieces, and more.

Other Writers Need to Concentrate makes the complex connections between authorship and parenthood visible. Through blog posts, digital readings, and networking activities, the association fosters exchange, documents working conditions, and raises awareness of the needs of writing parents.

Australia

HOWL Magazine

Region: Australia (Traditional Custodians: Bunurong People of the Kulin Nation)

Visit the HOWL Magazine website

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Canada

MOTHRA Residency

Region: Toronto, Canada

Visit the MOTHRA Residency website

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France

Initiative for Practices and Visions of Radical Care

Region: Paris, France

Visit the Radical Care Initiative website

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Ireland

The Mothership Project

Region: Ireland

Visit The Mothership Project website

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Netherlands

The Artist and the Others

Region: Netherlands

Visit The Artist and the Others website

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United Kingdom

Art Working Parents Alliance

Region: London, England

Visit the Art Working Parents Alliance website

Babes in Arms

Region: UK

Visit the Babes in Arms website

Creative Mothers Project

Region: Leeds, England

Visit the Creative Mothers Project website

Desperate Artwives

Region: Online / UK

Visit the Desperate Artwives website

Hidden Mothers Art Project

Region: UK

Visit the Hidden Mothers Art Project website

How Not to Exclude Artist Parents (Guidelines)

Region: UK

Visit the How Not to Exclude Artist Parents website

INFEMS

Region: UK

Visit the INFEMS website

M(other) Art Collective

Region: UK

Visit the M(other) Art Collective website

MAMSIE – Mapping Maternal Subjectivities, Identities and Ethics

Region: Online and London, UK

Visit the MAMSIE website

Maternal Art

Region: Todmorden, England

Visit the Maternal Art website

Maternal Journal

Region: UK & USA

Visit the Maternal Journal website

Mother Art Prize

Region: London, England

Visit the Mother Art Prize website

Mother House Studios

Region: London, England

Visit the Mother House Studios website

Mother Makers

Region: UK

Visit the Mother Makers website

Motherlore

Region: Bristol, UK

Visit the Motherlore website

MOTHEROTHER

Region: Newcastle, UK

Visit the MOTHEROTHER website

Mothers Who Make

Region: UK-wide / Global

Visit the Mothers Who Make website

Mothers Who Write

Region: UK

Visit the Mothers Who Write website

Mothersuckers

Region: Cardiff, Wales

Visit the Mothersuckers website

Outside In

Region: UK

Visit the Outside In website

Parents and Carers in the Performing Arts (PiPA)

Region: UK

Visit the PiPA website

Parents Who Paint

Region: Stroud, UK

Visit the Parents Who Paint website

Performance and the Maternal

Region: Cardiff, Wales

Visit the Performance and the Maternal website

POST Photography Collective

Region: Online / UK

Visit the POST Photography Collective website

Procreate Project

Region: London, England

Visit the Procreate Project website

Spilt Milk

Region: Edinburgh, Scotland

Visit the Spilt Milk website

Stryx Gallery

Region: Birmingham, UK

Visit the Stryx Gallery website

The Mothers UK

Region: Online

Visit The Mothers UK website

Woman Up!

Region: UK

Visit the Woman Up! website

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South Africa

Art after Baby

Region: Cape Town, South Africa

Visit the Art after Baby feature on Investec Cape Town Art Fair


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Poland

Matki twórczynie

Region: Warsaw, Poland

Visit the instagram of Matki twórczynie
Visit the Facebook of Matki twórczynieVisit facebook.com
Email Matki twórczynie

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United States

Artist/Mother Podcast

Region: USA

Visit the Artist/Mother Podcast website

Center for Parenting Artists

Region: USA

Visit the Center for Parenting Artists website

Cultural ReProducers

Region: USA

Visit the Cultural ReProducers website

Mother Artists Making Art

Region: USA

Visit the Mother Artists Making Art website

MUTHA Magazine

Region: USA

Visit the MUTHA Magazine website

PAAL – Parent Artist Advocacy League for Performing Arts + Media

Region: USA

Visit the PAAL website

Pen Parentis

Region: USA

Visit the Pen Parentis website

Sister Song Collective

Region: USA

Visit the Sister Song Collective website

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Global / Multiple Regions

ARIM – Artist Residency in Motherhood

Region: Global

Visit the Artist Residency in Motherhood website

Artist Parent Index

Region: Global

Visit the Artist Parent Index website

Both Artist and Mother

Region: Global

Visit the Both Artist and Mother website

Eye Mama

Region: Global

Visit the Eye Mama Project website

Literary Mama Journal

Region: Global

Visit the Literary Mama website

MOMTRA

Region: Global

Visit the MOMTRA website

Raising Films

Region: Global

Visit the Raising Films website

The Mother Load

Region: Global

Visit The Mother Load website

The collective sees it as essential to redefine public spaces—considering their role in shaping our social and communal behavior—and to reflect on our own position within these dynamics.
This is why Radical Care Lab engages with the question: “What is your radical act of care?”

The collective initiates artistic interventions, discussions, and workshops to reclaim space for care in public environments.
Their practice operates at the intersection of feminism, accessibility, wellbeing, and intersectionality.

The platform aims to empower dancers to embrace the transformation that parenthood brings to professional identity.

Through engagement with the dance community, re_dance provides a supportive space for collecting ideas, developing solutions for working methods and structures, and responding to individual needs.

re_dance carries out ongoing research and organizes exchanges to explore different perspectives on this important topic.

The initiative reviews the family-friendliness and structural design of funding programs in Saxony-Anhalt and engages in dialogue with funders and decision-makers about adapting calls for proposals and implementation conditions.

Through various activities such as talks, workshops, and exhibitions, the initiative brings these issues into the public sphere.
Werk & Wippe is young, activist, and open to everyone seeking exchange and wanting to get involved.