Picturing Mothers
September booking is open
A couple of weeks ago I wrote an Instagram post about art history, cuts to university departments, and why the humanities matter. I didn’t expect more than 60,000 people to see it.
The response to moved me and reminded me that the ability to look critically at an image, to ask who made it and why and what it wants us to feel, is not a luxury but a necessity.
Which neatly leads me into announcing dates for the next iteration of my popular workshop, Picturing Mothers.
In September I’m running two half-day workshops exploring how motherhood has been represented, idealised, politicised and reimagined through art across cultures and history. From ancient fertility figures to contemporary works exploring labour, care and resistance, we’ll look closely at iconic artworks and ask what stories they tell.
It’s about how we picture motherhood. And how we picture ourselves.
There is a weekday session and a Saturday session, both run from 10am to 1pm, with a break. They are the same, so you can choose which day suits you best.
In addition, there will be a private course page with further creative prompts and optional summer reading materials to explore before and after September.
Two dates to choose from:
Thursday 17th September 2026
Saturday 26th September 2026
As a thank you for subscribing, I’d also like to offer 15% off any ticket. Just use the code Substack15 at checkout, the offer is valid until 23rd July 2026.
Tickets:
£45 — Community price
£89 — Standard price
£120 — Supporter price, including an optional developmental edit on a piece of writing of up to 1,000 words produced in response to the course (limited to 5 places).
Everyone gets access to the same materials, so choose a price point which best reflects your current budget. The higher tiers help support the free places.
Free places are available by confidential request. There is no need to divulge personal details. You can email joanna@joannawolfarth.com
No prior knowledge needed. I’d love to see you there.
Joanna