Conversations 2 -Berengere Brooks

As far as women are concerned, having children might be one of life's most transitional times, changing the way we feel about others and about ourselves. Berengere Brooks has captured the emotions of women surrounding motherhood in her installation "Conversations" of which a preview was held at the kOOii Art Space last Sunday (see earlier entry).
In the video "Women" she shows the viewer about the seemingly conflicting but intrinsically contemporary female emotions of wanting or having children.
In "Mothers " she allows mothers of young daughters to reflect on their own mothers. Juxtaposed, these two short videos leave the viewer with sense of humanity that must be empowering to many.
Brooks is not the first artist to explore motherhood and womanhood from these angles, and won't be the last. Her approach however validates peoples natural ability for love and exalts common feelings as part of the turmoil which surrounds our lives and relationships.

Some images of the preview at kOOii:


My Great Love: Stereophonic Installation 1"29" Women talking about their big love, how much they can love someone and talk about moments of intimacy.

Paintings in acrylic on brown paper
The Origin of The World Photograph 24 x 38 inch
A direct reference to the famous Courbet painting "the Origin of the World" (1866). Where does the world start? Where do we come from? Do we become women by giving birth? What happens if it is not a natural birth? Have we failed in any way? What about women who choose not to give birth naturally?

6 Months in the Office -photographic installation
My first day in the office...how was it? How do each of us mark our territory in a working space? And where are the human beings? Can we still keep our individuality in there?



for a review of the preview in The Bottom Line newspaper click here