things that make and break our births
- Categories
- Book/Boek
- Creator
- Fisher , Michelle Millar
- Contributor
- Barton, Juliana Rowen > Barton, Juliana Rowen (curator)
- Corporate
- The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage
- Publish Year
- 2021
- Thesaurus
- vormgeving
- Description
- Book about the material culture of human reproduction. It explores over a hundred designs, used worldwide from the 20th century until 2021, of objects, tools, techniques, and systems for reproductive health, menstruation, contraception, conception, pregnancy, birth, the postpartum period, menopause. The designs have been used by millions of people and live in women's memories and their bodies, but remain mostly hidden - unless they are required - and receive almost no attention in museums collections, fashion and design exhibitions, design education and canons of visual culture. E.g. menstrual products, contraceptives, speculum, birthing furniture, labor and delivery ward, maternity garments, pain-relief methods, kraamzorg (care practices for the immediate postpartum period), breast pumps, and family leave. Also other aspects are highlighted, as midwives and doulas, hidden mothers, adoption, and books, photography and films on maternity. These are interwoven with experiences of contributors of different genders, ethnicities and identities through interviews, artwork and oral histories about topics as sexual pleasure, violence, infant loss to unwilling adoption.