Post-Part draws on the written works of Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Barbara Ehrenreich, as well as takes visual inspiration from the contemporary collage movement and the RGB innovation of the Italian design duo Carnovsky. It reimagines a 19th century-style brocade wallpaper pattern incorporating a “hidden” collage narrative, combined with an immersive auditory score to bring to life the experience of Postpartum Mood Disorders. Using testimonies gathered from Kitchener-Waterloo as well as international LGBTQIA+, Black, and Indigenous birthing parents, the installation presents an opportunity to question and reflect on how far we have come in supporting birthing people during the perinatal period.

Image: Longernin Collective, Post-Part (2021), Installation view: Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost, Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener + Area (CAFKA) 2021. Photo: David Botros.