Hiatus: Mothers of Invention

By the time her second child was born, she’d had it with taking photos of babies and realized she had to find a creative outlet, so she returned to her first love: drawing. “I could do it at the kitchen table at night or during nap time. I could even take it to the park where I’d draw mothers and kids. I drew myself, my ridiculous suburban self and my frustration. I drew like I did when I was twelve, and I am still doing it.”

This renewal seems to be the upside of the hiatus, reconnecting with a part of the self that was in juicy full-bloom before motherhood. Inhabiting a space also seems crucial. Blair first did her sculpture in a dingy corner of the basement, but has since brought her clay and tools up to the sunroom where she works in the midst of the family. The spatial centrality of her workspace underlines her newfound pride in what she’s doing: “I walk by my work during the day, and it makes me happy. I’m excited to return to it.”

Likewise, Smith, who is pregnant with a third child, is making plans to have a painting studio in an airplane hanger rented by her brother. “I know it’s crazy to say when I’m pregnant,” she admits, “but I feel like I’m on the crux of a new period with my work.” Her older kids will both be in school, and she’s interviewing babysitters for the baby for a few afternoons a week, a big step for her. “I’m definitely moving beyond the kitchen table!” she declares.

Hmmm … dare I admit where I’m writing this very moment? In bed next to a sleeping child who had a nightmare about E.T. Perhaps I’d best take these women’s lead and clean off my desk tomorrow.