Philps, Lizzie
Maternity Leaves: 9 Paces
Performance Documentation
2013
Maternity Leaves documents a series of short walks exploring the space of motherhood. As I dared myself to take a few more steps away from my baby than was comfortable, my choices were shaped by the real and imagined reactions of passers by. The limits of socially acceptable maternal distance became a playful provocation.
This was the first maternal art work I made, back when I thought the idea of the performing maternal was a bit embarrassing. It turned into a practice- based PhD at Exeter University, considering the documentation of walking performance and its potential to re-inscribe maternalised landscapes from within. GPS Embroidery is an ongoing project, funded by the Arts Council. Other performance, exhibition and publication contexts including LADA’s DIY 2017, the Study Room Guide to the Maternal (2016), Walking Women at Somerset House (2016), The Walking Encyclopedia (2014) and Ways to Wander (2015). I developed the performance documentation The Pilgrimage of the Prodigal Daughter (2013) as part of Bristol Old Vic’s Ferment. Before developing this practice I directed as a freelancer and ran a national touring theatre company. I am currently Programme Leader of the BA in Drama and Performance at BIPA, Bristol.
