Tereza Buskova
Hidden Mothers
Performance
2021
Buskova completed Fine Art Printmaking MA at the Royal College of Art in 2007. Her work has been exhibited at Rituals, David Roberts Art Foundation, London (2008); A Tradition I Do Not Mean To Break, Zabludowicz Collection, London (2009); Rituals Are Tellers Of Us, Newlyn Art Gallery, UK (2013); and Reality Czech: The Czech Avant-Garde, Whitechapel Gallery, London (2015). She has exhibited, performed and lectured in a broad range of different spaces, including Lincoln’s Chambers Farm Wood (2010), Kunstnernes Hus, Oslo (2014).
Since 2019, Buskova has been working together with migrant & refugee women across the West Midlands and London – Hidden Mothers, which was part of the London Festival of Architecture (2021) and Little Queens, West Bromwich (2022) both projects received continuous support from the Arts Council England. Frequent collaborators are costume maker Mariana Novotna, performer Zoe Simon, cellist-composer Bela Emerson and textile artist Tina Francis.
Hidden Mothers video was recorded as part of a public art project inspired by the cultural customs from Great Britain, Central and Eastern Europe. Its focus is the empowerment of women, in particular mothers, who experience isolation and routinely face stigma in the UK. Hidden Mothers began in Birmingham in 2019 with workshops, inviting migrant and refugee mothers. In present day society, motherhood with all its glory and hardships remains shrouded by societal norms and expectations. Often confined to the home and further compounded by stigma and challenges which come with migrant status, mothers are politically marginalised, their presence is overlooked and their invaluable contribution is taken for granted. The Victorian era photographic technique is a fitting metaphor for this enduring status quo.
Hidden Mothers project empowers mothers to step out from the shadows into the very heart of their community. It celebrates them with rituals and beautiful folklore and offers a unique opportunity for women from diverse cultures to come together and create shared memories and connections.
The project was part of the Every Woman Biennial and London Festival of Architecture, 2021. Hidden Mothers, 2021, Single Screen Video, Duration 4min 54sec
